RWBY The Vigilante
by Nicholas Van Thorne
Summary: What if there already were protectors of humanity before Huntsmen and Huntresses? What if some of them are still alive? Meet the new hero, a mysterious man, who sets off on his personal journey through swarms of Grimm, bandits and his own nature. His intentions are unknown to us...yet...
1. Something's wrong

„Join me now for the brand new tale, the greatest you could have ever heard" said out loud one drunk man in a tavern the other day. Intrigued people gathered around him, their ears prepared to hear a new impossible story created by the constant client of the inn.

As always, the place was filled with thugs, looters and other scum that Remnant had to offer. But none of them ever tried to take an evil action this time. They all knew how that one particular man was too good at telling tales. They always were so thrilling and full of adventures, you could swear the events are happening right now. The tale teller was a liar, though. He lived his boring and non-productive life in this tavern, sleeping on the table in the right corner of the hall, drinking ale and creating stories of a man he wishes to be one day. The staff even stopped caring much about him, since his presence was already a routine for them. On that particular night, when the thugs started gathering around the tale teller with their mugs filled with fresh alcohol, looking at him with hope for another night spent on something different than killing and stealing, the bartender walked into one of the waitresses and stopped right next to her, looking at the same direction:

-Another story by the good old table sleeper?-he asked rhetorically the waitress, smiling sneeringly-surely it's been a while since we saw such crowd around him

-Yeah-responded the waitress-and as always he claims this will be the best he has for them

Meanwhile, the tale teller was having a lot of fun. He already introduced his listeners to the main character-a son of a huntsmen, humiliated and betrayed by his fellow teammates. He was about to give even more details about the fictional character…when suddenly a very loud roaring could be heard not far away from the doors to the tavern. It worried everyone inside, making the place oddly quiet at that time. But then it stopped so everyone was reliefed and could finally stop worrying that a furious Grimm would charge into the tavern. Right after that though they heard footsteps going slowly towards the tavern's doors. The entire place grown quiet like a tomb.

After some seconds the doors opened wide. A cold breeze of air went through all the hall. A dark figure crossed the doorstep and shut the door quietly. The figure had a long, black trench-coat, still waving a little while he was closing the door. His hands were covered in thick, leather gloves decorated with shining brads. The crowd inside couldn't tell who it was, mainly because of a brown cowboy hat on his head, a bandana covering his mouth and most of the nose and sunglasses covering his eyes. When he started walking, the visitors of tavern noticed his creepy shoes-bovver boots, also black, covering more than all his foot and a metallic sound of belts fastened on the shoewear of his. The mysterious man was about to sit on a bar stool, when he suddenly stopped. He turned around at the crowd listening to the tale teller, raised his hand slowly and shaked it a little as if he wanted to say „hello". It was at this moment that the criminals of Remnant lost all their interest and turned back at the „table sleeper". The man was still too scared to say anything in a louder tone so he started whispering the story, during which some thugs started to discuss among themselves what is it like to be „free from the control", followed by the next mugs of ale and additional bottles of rum.

Meanwhile, the mysterious man sat down on the stool and took off his gloves. His hands were in the color of very pale pink. The bartender slowly approached him, his heart was beating very fast. It was then that he noticed a small chain around his neck. „He wears a necklace on a chain. It's been a while since I saw something like that" he thought to himself:

-What can I do for you, sir?-he asked politely, smiling and hiding the paralysing stress that was sending shivers down his whole body

At first the newcome customer didn't seem to listen to him as he was busy taking off his hat and pulling bandana down from his face. The bartender then saw, what his face really looked like, except the eyes, because the mysterious man didn't even bother taking off his sunglasses.

Judging by this man's face he was probably 20 or 21 years old. His nose was small, his lips narrow, his ears also small and the hair was long, dark brown and without any grey elements. The bartender swallowed saliva in fear, waiting for him to say something. After about one minute, which was probably one of the longest minutes he ever had in his life, the newcomer's emotionless face smiled politely and replied with a very gentle, yet deep voice:

-Just a glass of water, please-he said apathetically, nodding slowly

-With gas?-asked the bartender breathing a sigh of relief

-Yes, please-the customer replied in the same way, nodding again

The bartender then walked away to the water dispensor in the kitchen. After just two minutes he came back with a glass of sparkling water and put it on the table. The new customer seemed to be in deep thoughts, because he was just sitting with his hands linked together near his chin and didn't say a word. After quite some time he put his hands separately on the table, snapped his fingers, catching the bartender's attention while he was polishing the glasses and pointed his finger at him. The man behind the counter walked closer to the mysterious man and asked if he needed anything else. The long haired guy just smiled in response and asked quietly:

-Friend, how long is it from here to Vale?

-About 2 days on a horse without sleep-the bartender replied

-And if I am on a more…advanced type of horse?

-What?-the bartender got confused. He walked away from the stranger and looked through the window. Next to the horses of his other customers stood a big-sized, shiny chopper motorcycle covered in black leather. Probably one of the most remarkable things was the steering wheel resembling the shape of horns, which were connected to the front, resembling the shape of a goat's skull. At that moment, fear struck the bartender again. He had no doubt, who the new customer was. Slowly, he walked back to him, sat back from where he was talking to him, closed his eyes and without looking him in the eyes, he quietly said:

-About 10 hours without sleep

The mysterious man smiled, drank all the water from his glass at one go, stood up from his stool, put on the gloves and the hat, pulled back the bandana over the mouth and nose and took out a small wallet from his pocket:

-So…how much is it gonna be?-he asked, looking at the money he had. His voice was a little muffled

The bartender was just about to say something, when suddenly he saw two thugs coming in the mysterious man's direction. His heart started beating as fast as it could.

The mysterious man spotted the nervousness of the bartender and turned around. The two thugs stopped right in front of him, crossing their arms. They had long grey beards and had wooden sticks attached to their right thighs. What surprised the mysterious man the most, though, was the fact that they both looked exactly the same:

-You goin' somewhere, kiddo?-asked one of the thugs. He sounded like he was looking for a beating along with the typical drunk hoarseness

-Vale-the mysterious guy quickly replied

-And whatcha' gonna look for there, huh?-asked the other one. He sounded even more drunk

-Boys, I'm not looking for a problem. Let's just go our separate ways and make sure nobody gets hurt in the process

-Aw, ya surely are not lookin' for a problem-laughed one of the thugs-mainly 'cause you're the problem

-I'm not sure I understand-the customer replied. His apathy was getting creepy. But still both thugs started laughing very hard

-Don'tcha even try to play dumb with me, kiddo-one of the thugs approached the mysterious guy even closer-I know, who ya are. It's been so long since I last saw someone in those characteristic coats. I hope the council still has some Liens to spare on ya head

-Since when you guys are bounty hunters?-asked sneeringly the mysterious guy, hiding his wallet back in the trench-coat

-Wait a sec…how come you know us?!-asked one of the thugs shocked and surprised

-It's impossible not to know you-replied the mysterious guy-Deergan and Maervan Coiny, the twin brothers from Vacuo, known for their notorious robberies in several liquor stores, leaving typical marks of empty shelves and cash machines. Hunted by the police of Vacuo and Mistral for 3 years by far, the bounty for you now is 12 million Liens for one, dead or alive, and it's still growing

-Well…-one of the thugs laughed nervously. He was confused, yet honored. But alcohol immediately got rid of all his doubts-then you will know, who broke your nose!

-Bad idea-said the mysterious man and smiled, but it was too late. One of the Coiny brothers threw a punch going right at the man's face, but he missed. The guy dodged it to the left and hit one Coiny brother straight in the jaw, causing him to fly up for a second and hit the ground with his butt. The other one was about to charge, but the man also dodged that. The second thing the thug knew was the pain in his crotch. The guy kicked him right at the nuts, causing him to lay down on the floor, crying. But before he could move away, the one with the broken jaw tried to punch him again. This time the man blocked the blow and kicked the thug in the knee, causing him to kneel on one of them. After that the man threw a punch directly at Coiny's nose. The thug hit the ground with his back, blood started to leave his nostrils:

-Thank you for your performance, gentlemen-said the mysterious guy and was just about to leave when the door to the tavern opened again and 4 men walked in. Three of them wore white scales of a King Taijitu. One of them, who walked on the front, had black scales. He stood with hands on his hips and smoked a cigarette:

-Alright-he said-which of you, dumbasses, parked that big pile of metal scrap on my parking spot?

-Is there a problem?-asked the mysterious man

-Yeah-replied the guy in black scales and approached the man closely-first of all, those two bastards you just beat up were mine. Second of all, would you mind taking that ugly piece of crap out of my parking spot?

-Well I was about to leave, Mr Blanjoi

The guy in black scales bit the cigarette in his mouth harder and looked the mysterious man straight in the eyes:

-That's not my name anymore, and you know that very well

-Yeah, sure. How do they call you now? Oh yeah, I remember. „The Snake Gun", right? The murderer of courtesans from Mistral. But honestly, I think you should be called „The Snake Pun" because those King Taijitus were probably making them before you started wearing them as a robe

-You son of a…-started Mr Blanjoi, his face red in rage, trying to desperately pull out his gun from holster. But he didn't end his sentence, because from the man's right sleeve a small object appeared in his hand, which started to grow in size. After a few seconds, a long, dual wielded steel sword was held in the man's hand. Without hesitation, he threw a cut at The Snake Gun. The murderer started screaming very loud. The rest of the tavern's customers looked in horror. The assassin had no hand. A little later the man cut again. This time The Snake Gun literally lost his head. The inn grew silent again. Then, the henchmen woke up from the shock of seeing their leader being killed and opened fire from the rifles they had in their hands all this time. The man, however, started deflecting all their shots until they realised, they had no bullets left.

-My turn-said the mysterious guy and jumped towards the henchmen

For the next few seconds the customers of the tavern watched in horror, as an unknown guy in a trench-coat swings a 40,5 inch sword at the henchmen, maiming them severly, causing blood to spill all over the floor and walls, making his victims scream in pain as they were passing away. After that, the man's sword grew back to a small object that looked like the sword's handle and disappeared in his sleeve. Then he walked to the counter, behind which the terrified bartender was hiding and pulled out the wallet again from his coat. From his wallet he took out 20 Liens and put them on the counter:

-Sorry for that mess, friend-he said in his typical apathetic tone

-You monster!-The man suddenly heard one of The Coiny Brothers behind him. Without hesitation, he pointed a golden gun that appeared in his left hand from the sleeve and fired two bullets at the beaten thieves without taking his eyes off the bartender. This caused the robbers to stiffen on the ground forever.

The mysterious man finally left the tavern. It was almost midnight. His beloved chopper awaited, without a single scratch. He sit on it, started the engine, roared it a little and drove off the parking zone back on the road, which he followed to his destination-The city of Vale.

(So, „At last begins our true adventure, epic, wild, a real butt-clencher!" as the narrator of TV series „Galavant" sang. I hope you liked the first chapter of my first RWBY fanfiction. I suppose you're very curious about the mysterious man. Fear not, his name will be revealed in the next chapter. I hope I'm not boring and you enjoyed my writings. If I made some grammar or word mistakes then I apologize-I'm just a bored kid from Poland who really likes RWBY, that's all. The lack of original RWBY characters in this chapter is because I actually planned to introduce them to my character in the next chapter. So, await the next chapter and I hope you have a good day sir or madame)


	2. Familliar faces

The man on the motorcycle was riding straight forward, without leaving the road even for a second. He ran out of songs on the music player, so the only thing he heard then was the roaring of engine. It was almost dawn, the sun was about to start shining. When it finally did, our hero stopped on a hill to do a routine scouting. He pulled out a spyglass and put it on his eye. The sight was…shocking.

The city of Vale was ruined. There was nothing but shattered buildings, broken asphalt roads and the Beacon tower completely fallen apart. The man's face was nothing but pure shock combined with...

„Empathy?" he asked himself. It caused him to faint a little. He quickly hid the spyglass in his coat and leaned on his motorcycle:

-Remember, remember…the 6th of december…the Dust, treason and plot…I see of no reason, why this treason shall ever be forgot…The Council…The Council…'twas their intent…to murder The Father, Son and Holy Spirit…five score murderers of warriors below…poor old Brotherhood to overthrow-the man whispered the rhymes he sought to always repeat, when he felt weak. After that, he felt much better and was about to get back on his motorcycle, when he heard roaring. But this wasn't the roaring of his engine. It sounded far more evil than this:

-You can hide-the man said while another sword hidden in his sleeve appeared in his hand. This time, even though it was simillar length, it was made of silver with steel elements. As an extra, the blade had runes and glyphs etched on it. The man tightened the grip on his sword and swinged it above his head with one hand. A devious grin appeared on his face-but you'll never surprise me

A Grimm emerged from bushes. It wasn't very big, but definitely bigger than the man, even though he was quite tall (about 1,88 metres to be precise):

-Creep-he said to himself when he got a clear view at the monster-Again?

The Grimm just roared and charged at the man. He just dodged to the left and swinged his sword at him. The blade made a small wound in creep's left arm, causing a small stream of blood to come out of it. But the Grimm didn't look even a bit worried, only more furious. He jumped again at the man, but those creatures are stupid, they didn't know what can such a warrior hide up in his sleeve.

Actually, quite literally, because the man just laughed as he was firing a bullet from his golden gun which immediately appeared in his hand. The bullet hit creep but in the crust, leaving a much less severe wound than in his left arm. The creep hit the ground, and started to slowly get back on his feet. The man stood there, trying to rebalance his breath:

-I'm gonna have to get back in shape a little-he said to the creep-you okay there? You look CREEPY (bad pun, I'm sorry)

But then he watched as the creep's wound suddenly started to heal and his bullet just fallen out of his crust:

-God dammit!-he said angrily, yet ironically-regeneration cells, I forgot about that

The man hid his sword in a sleeve, took out guns in both hands and slided onto the ground just at the right moment. When the creep attacked and was right above the man, he fired a couple of rounds right at his belly. The Grimm hit the ground heavily, this time it was much harder for him to regenerate and get up. This time, the man didn't waste any time. His breath was balanced, so he just hid his guns and snapped fingers on both of his hands:

-You just messed with the wrong human being-he said, smiling sneeringly and pointed both his hands at the creep

His hands brightened up, making the creep feel…fear. How come? Who could strike fear at a soulless creature? Theoretically, no Huntsmen or Huntress could frighten a Grimm. Theoretically…

Then his hands fired two bursts of flames directly at the creature. When they hit it and started to burn it out, the creep started to scream in pain. Again, something unusual, because creatures of Grimm usually don't feel pain even when they're dying. This time, though…the man made sure, that the creature suffered enough. After 2 minutes of constant flaming, the creep finally stiffened and silenced. The man wasn't tired at all. He just got back on his motorcycle and when he was about to drive off the hill, he saw, that the city of Vale is swarmed with Grimm marching towards it:

-God dammit-he said to himself-what the hell could possibly happen in this city? Ah, screw that, I don't have anything to do anyway…

The motorcycle drove directly off the hill, right towards the ruins of Vale. The man didn't even bother the Grimm roaring at him as he was driving. When he reached the first pieces of buildings at last, he saw soldiers shooting desperately at the monsters. He drove his motorcycle off the road and parked it near the ruin, where the soldiers were settled. After leaving his bike, he snuck inside, moving closer to the soldiers, surprised that they didn't notice him driving towards them. When he was right behind them, he overheard their conversation:

-How many of those monsters can be there?

-Dunno, let's just hope they end soon

-What I hope for, is that Ironwood better have a good excuse to hold us here this long

-Damn! I'm out of ammo

-Me too! Shit!

It was at this moment the man interfered:

-Fall back, reload the guns-he said-I'll take care of those

The soldiers turned around to see the mysterious man in a trench-coat standing right behind them:

-Citizen, what are you doing here?! Why aren't you on your evacuation ship?

-I'm not your citizen, gentlemen-the man quickly replied and showed them the medallion he had around his neck. The soldiers immediately changed their tone:

-Oh for fuck's sake, why now?!-yelled one of them-can't this really wait?

-Shut up, Jeff-the other one poked his companion-I'm really pleased to meet you, patron…

-No need to act fake-the mysterious man raised his hand and smiled-I know you don't really mean it. The only reason you're not cuffing me right now and claiming the bounty on my head is because you have a more…serious problem right now. Now get the hell out and let me handle this, 'cause that's what I'm good at

-You were lucky you bumped into us and not into one of those Atlesian Knights-said the soldier named Jeff

-Wait…so you guys are not from Vale?-asked the mysterious man, confused

-Of course not!-laughed the other one-We're from Atlas, called by mr. Ironwood to „clear up the rest of the mess"

-Ok, you're dismissed-said the mysterious man, seeing that a larger crowd of Grimm rushes towards his location

The soldiers ran away, while the man pulled out his gun from his sleeves:

-It's show time-he said and smiled to himself

The stampede consisted of 6 creeps, 4 beowolves and an ursa. „Piece of cake" the man thought to himself and started shooting from his guns. 1 Beowolf yelped and hit the ground, the other 3 were still charging. The man hid the guns and snapped his fingers in one hand. When he pointed it forward, a yellow force field surrounded him:

-Come for me-he said, grabbing a hold of his silver sword-let's dance

Unfortunately, it was an ursa that attacked him first. The man, however, didn't mind it at all. When ursa hit the force field, the man snapped his fingers again and moved his hand right at the Grimm. A huge, kinetic shockwave threw the ursa right at the three beowolves, crushing them in the proces. Then the creeps attacked. The force field wore off, so the man quickly swinged his sword a few Times, making sure he cut every creep as hard as he could and with a snap of fingers he burned them all with the beam coming from his hand. The creeps were turned to ash. The beowolves were crushed. But the ursa was still breathing. The man just approached the Grimm and was about to plunge the blade into his head, when he suddenly heard a gunshot, which hit the ursa in the head and ultimately killed him. The man looked at the direction, from where the gunshot came. He recognized the familliar figure right away.

It was a man in white military uniform. On one of his hands he wore a white glove. The man also saw the characteristical red tie, always visible. Also there was a small patch on his forehead. He held a revolver in his hand and was pointing it at the man. Next to him stood 3 other figures the man recognized: A short-haired, blonde woman with green eyes, big glasses and a whip in her hand, a fat old man with huge grey moustache wielding an axe and an adult man with spiky green hair in white shirt and a yellow tie wielding a torch resembling in shape of a thermos. The man smiled, hid his sword and laughed:

-Sorry you missed the party-he said

-You're lucky I missed when I shot-replied the guy with the revolver

-Should I thank you or something?-the mysterious guy asked. He then saw Atlesian soldiers surrounding him from clever covers and pointing guns at him

-I should have known-the guy with the revolver said after a moment of silence-that you, The Hexmen, don't know what gratitude is or even means

-You're a bad offender, General Ironwood-laughed the mysterious man

-So you know my name-replied the man in uniform, while hiding his gun-but I still have no idea, who you are, Hexmen

The mysterious man spread his arms widely and started his introduction:

-Behold, the creature trained in all arts of magic and combat, the shadow darker than Grimm itself, the being that works in darkness to serve the light, the protector of the worthy of innocence, Nicholas Van Thorne, at your service-after he finished it, he slowly nodded at general and his companions-or you can simply call me „Nick", it's also tolerable

-Van Thorne, you say?-said the man with green hair very quickly, correcting the glasses on his nose-I think I may have heard this surname before, but I have no one I could connect it to

-You may not know me, Doctor Oobleck-said Nick-but you and all your companions definitely knew my father, Sihill Vel Gwyhyr

-Dear god…-whispered the woman with the whip in shock-the rumours were true…

-That's preposterous!-yelled the fat man with axe

-You think so, Professor Port?-said Van Thorne, smiling sneeringly while pulling out his medalion-then how will you explain THIS?

The sight of Nick's medallion shocked all the people gathered there, especially the woman with the whip. The medallion had 5 sculpted heads of animals attached to it: Bear's, Griffin's, Cat's, Wolf's and a twisted shape resembling a Viper:

-So-she said, still shocked-you really are the successor of the Great Sihill Vel Gwyhyr-while she was saying that she started to walk towards him slowly

-Yes-he replied, standing still while the woman with the whip walked towards him. When she finally stood right in front of him, Nick took off his hat and attached it to his belt, pulled down his bandana and took off his sunglasses. His eyes were pale green, very big, with narrow pupil:

-I…-stuttered the woman for a second and slowly put her hand on Nick's cheek-It really is you, little Nicky?

Van Thorne suddenly realised, that there was only one person that ever called him like that. And with that, not only did he remember who the woman was as a Huntress but also who was she for him. He put the woman's hand away from his cheek and…hugged her tightly. The woman did the same thing. Suddenly Nick noticed that tears start to drop from his eyes. He quickly washed them away with his hand and just whispered into woman's ear:

-I'm here now, Auntie Glynda

Glynda Goodwitch released him, her mind was filled with questions and shock, but also with great joy, which she hasn't experienced in a very long time:

-Everybody-she said to the rest of her companions, smiling-put your weapons down. It's…Nick is my nephew…

-WHAT?!-yelled at the same time Ironwood, Oobleck, Port and all the Atlesian soldiers

(There we are, we're after the 2nd chapter. I'm glad you waited this patiently to find out, what's the name of our character. And finally it starts to look more like RWBY for you, huh? Well..I guess it's a good moment to say, that this fanfiction became kind of a big deal for me. I actually, if everything goes smoothly, am going to storm RTX and present them this story. Mainly because I hated the ending for Volume 3 and want to make next season of RWBY look not like Game Of Thrones, where all the good characters die and the assholes keep on living, but like…well, RWBY. So, here's my request to you, dear sir or madame who keeps on reading my crap. Write me a review of what do you think of the story so far, I really appreciate it. Also, to all those who like the story so far, my friend is making a poster for the series, which I'll be using as the cover image of every episode. So, I hope I didn't bore you to death, have a good day)


	3. The situation

-Glynda, how could you not tell us that you had a nephew?!-yelled Ironwood a little later at the teacher in the leader's tent at the camp of Atlesian Soldiers settled deeper in the ruins of Vale-don't you trust us?

-Trust has nothing to do with that, General-replied mrs. Goodwitch-I'm in even deeper shock than you are, not to mention the amount of questions I want to ask Nick

-How did this actually happen?-asked Oobleck, who was sitting quietly with professor Port near Ironwood's desk-does Ozpin know?

-I hope he doesn't-replied Glynda and let out a sigh of defeat-ok, you wanna know, how did that happen?

-YES!-yelled Ironwood, Oobleck and Port at the same time

-Well…you see…I used to have a sister…a long time ago…she was the complete opposite of me in our parent's eyes. That's why she used to call me „the little spoiled sis". We also went on different paths. I graduated, studied, had a goal in life. My sister…didn't have this much luck. She first started with some pickpocketing for not much money. Later, it turned into prostitution. I saw her once on the street very late at night. Her dress torn, bruises all over her shoulders and back, and she almost couldn't walk because of how drunk she was. Yet I didn't help her. Later, our parents found out how she earns money and kicked her out of our house. My sister wandered the lands outside of city for a long time…until she was attacked by a bunch of Grimm. They would kill her if she wasn't saved by a charming guy with a medallion resembling in shape of fox's head. That man…

-Was Vel Gwyhyr, right?-Oobleck interrupted her

-Yes. He really changed my sister. He took her to the village where the Hexmen resided

-You mean The Gwynbleidd village?-asked Port, surprised

-Yes. And they lived happily ever after. My sister married Vel Gwyhyr and then they had a kid. A boy, whom they named Nicholas. I visited them once, when Nick was 6 years old. My sister didn't say a word nor did Sihill, but little Nicky acted like I was his family. We talked for so long, and he even got to sit on my lap for a while. But after that, I've never seen them again…until now

-Wow, Glynda-said Ironwood, almost speechless-I…I never knew…

-It's okay-she interrupted-I never wanted to tell you anyway. But since he's here already, I think you might experience some changes in my schedule

-Yeah yeah-said professor Port, confused-oh, it's really getting late. Maybe we should try and get some sleep?

-Good idea-added Oobleck, while he was yawning and getting up from his chair

-Good night then-said Glynda and left the tent

Goodwitch walked only a few steps when she felt someone's presence. She laughed a little bit and turned into a big shadow next to the tent:

-You almost sneaked up on me-she said

-Almost. If only I didn't use this stupid perfume…-said Nick and walked out of the shadow. He didn't have his trench-coat, gloves, hat, bandana and sunglasses on, just a red t-shirt, army pants, medallion and the boots

-Don't be silly, you smell terrific. If I were just a little younger…

-Auntie, please don't go ANY further than this-said Nicholas, a little bit scared

-Oh, you're no fun, Nicky. Alright, the general awaits but Oobleck and Port went to sleep. I'll go get them and join you later

-Yeah, sure

Nick walked into the leader's tent. General Ironwood sat behind his desk, doing something on his holographic computer. When he saw Van Thorne, he immediately got up from his chair and smiled:

-Nicholas, I'm glad you accepted my invitation!-he said-please, have a seat

Ironwood sat back on his chair and Nick did so too by sitting in front of him on a smaller one

-Allow me first to apologize for conditions in this tent and for pointing a gun at you

-No problem, general. I knew you wouldn't do it anyway-Van Thorne replied

-Oh, okay…well, your aunt and the teachers should be here soon and then we'll start

-Just one question before that…General, where is my motorcycle?

-In the garage with the rest of the vehicles. Peter Port took care of it. It will be returned to you, whenever you'll need it

-That's good to know-replied Nick, surprised how fast they took care of his chopper

Van Thorne was just sitting there for about 2 minutes when he finally got bored again:

-So, general…-he said

-Yes?-Ironwood replied

-What is it you're typing so quickly on your device?

-I'm making a report. Atlas should know how are things around here…

-The news are not enough?-asked Nick, looking closer into general's computer-I knew it, you're not reporting to the news

-What makes you say that?

-Since when the logo of the news company is a snowflake?-asked Nick, smiling sneeringly-are you another agent of the Schnee Company, James?

-I'm not!-said Ironwood, angry that someone besides him found out-I just…

-These sellouts just give more money than the council, huh? Can't say I blame you, you know how The Brotherhood feels about the governments…but it doesn't justify that the millitary is getting…greedy

-Greedy?-Ironwood felt offended-YOU dare accuse soldiers for being greedy while your comrades were nothing more than just swords and guns for hire?!

-At least we weren't taking bribes when something evil was happening…

-My soldiers are not corrupted!

-And yet you replace them with robots…

-It's because we didn't want more people to die in jaws of Grimm!

-But you still don't give them full protection! You just think that if you kill Grimm then people are safe. But you keep on forgetting, that humans are also animals. They will try to kill each other, no matter for what. And that's when the angels of disease descend from the darkness and walk among them. To take them all, one by one. And when they come, the only thing your soldiers have to offer are flamethrowers that burn the infected corpses

-Enough!-yelled Ironwood. He couldn't take this mental assault anymore-I understand, that the only feeling you have for humanity now is hate. But it's not a good time and place for such quarrels. Cooperate with us, and we shall do the same. Let's not dwell on the past and focus on the present

-With pleasure, Ironwood-Nick got what he wanted. He decided, there's no point in further arguing. It was at this moment Glynda Goodwitch, Bartholomew Oobleck and Peter Port walked in. Nick stood up from his chair and nodded at their direction. The newcomers took their seats next to Ironwood behind his desk. Nick was the only one still sitting in front of them

-So…-Port began-let me ask the first and the most important question. How are you feeling, Nick?

-I'm ok, professor Port. Thank you for asking. I appreciate your cooperation in taking care of my bike-he replied

-That was nothing. Ok then. Bart, do you want to ask now?

-Certainly-the doctor replied, as always very quickly-Nick, where did you get all this gear?

-The swords are just standard equipment of every Hexman and Hexwoman. The guns are my own, bought from a tradesman on my way to Vale. The motorcycle I made by myself

-I've gotta ask two questions-Ironwood said without asking for permission-First of all, my soldiers claim that they saw you fighting a bunch of Grimm with, allow me to quote that, „Magic". What will you say about that?

-I say your soldiers are dumb, general. Have you never heard of what happens to the Hexmen's aura after initiation? No rumours, no theories?

-No-replied Ironwood-mainly because The Brotherhood never revealed how their initiation is done

-Yeah, I know-said Nick-but saying that we use magic is just ridiculous. You see, after initiation, our aura is corrupted. That turns our soul into a fight between two types of nature. It is sometimes painful, but also has its perks. One of them is the ability to use more than one semblance. What's even better is that if we don't make our semblances more powerful than they already are, we don't lose any aura. What's your other question, general?

-Oh, sure-the general seemed to be deep in thoughts-Uhhhhh…I forgot

-Good-Glynda Goodwitch interrupted-because I want to also ask him something. So, Nicky, tell me: How did you get all this money in your wallet? I counted it all, it's at least 10000 Liens

-And I had much, much more, Auntie Glynda-Van Thorne replied-you see, I visited some villages while I was going here. By the way, if you think they're poor or something, then bite my ass, they're not. If one guy paid me 1000 Liens just for looking after his cattle, during which I shot just one fox with rabies, then you know that ain't poor village at all. Later, I started taking some more…serious jobs but by complete accident. You see…it looked like I kind of hunt for criminals. But it mainly was like that: those idiots had a problem with me, I tried to be reasonable, not put up a fight, but they were just jumping at me anyway. So I was killing them. And then BAM! I find out that these guys had bounty on their heads, and that all of it goes to me. So…my wallet was fat. Was, because now I'd say it's rather slim

-Oh, I remember it now!-yelled Ironwood suddenly-it's related to Glynda's question: How come you've killed all these bandits, did all these jobs, and yet did not attract any attention?

-The answer is simple, general-Nick replied-semblance. One of our semblances is mind control. The other ones are a trap circle, a force field, kinetic shockwave and my favourite fire beams. That's the best translation from Gwynbleidd dialect as I can do, don't ask me to make a more precise one

-I think we understand, how your semblances work-said Ironwood

-Now, another question-said Oobleck-do you have any other relative besides Glynda Goodwitch?

-Nope, my mum and dad perished during „the purification". Ordered by your governments, done by murderers you call heroes

-Oh, well…sorry to hear that-Oobleck seemed sad-you can go now. I think there are no further questions

-Actually-said Port-I have one…

-Peter, if you're going to say that…-interrupted Oobleck

-What other choice do we have, Bart?!-yelled the fat professor

-What is it, Port?-Nick asked

-Well…you see, Nick, we kind of wanted to ask for your help…

-Me?! The so called heroes of Remnant ask me for help?!

-I told you, how he would react-said Oobleck

-Anyway, Nick. How many species of Grimm do you know?

-Well…-Van Thorne pretended to be drowning in thoughts-Creeps, Beowolves, Griffons, Ursas, Boarbatusks, King Taijitus, Nevermores…oh! And Goliaths, though we don't kill them if we don't have to

-Well, I can tell you it's not everything-said Port

-It is! Unless…-Van Thorne suddenly realised something…and burst out laughing. He almost fell off his chair but when he held onto it, he stopped laughing for a second but then he snickered and started to laugh again-You just said the best joke ever, mr. Port! The best goddamn one!

-Mind your language, young man-said Glynda-it's not a joke

-Come on…where is the hidden camera?-said Nick, still laughing-I bet someone is going to get in here now screaming „It's just a prank bro"

-It's not a joke!-yelled Ironwood and hit the desk with his fist. Nick immediately shivered and stopped laughing

-You mean that…the Grimm Dragon is really on the loose?

-Was-Oobleck corrected him

-Then…it's dead? Well…I'm impressed. Even my father thought that killing a beast this large is almost impossible

-It's not dead and it's not exactly on the loose-said Port

-I don't think I understand…

-Something…happened a little while ago…-said Glynda

-Yeah, Vale was turned into a second Mountain Glenn, I see this much

-I know. But apart from that, something weird happened and…the dragon froze into an ice brick

-What?! Did it like fall into a pool of liquid nitrogen or something? That would be funny, since dragons are known for being not that clumsy

-We thought you may do something about this giant frozen brick with the dragon in it. You're a Hexman, you know everything about monsters-said Port

-Ok, I will. I've never seen this dragon live, could be a nice view for me

-We're not taking you to admire the monster, Nick-said Glynda-we want you to do a further analysis and find a solution to stop it from attracting the rest of the Grimm into Vale

-Hmmmmmm…that gives me a thought. I'll get my gear and we can go

Glynda, Port, Oobleck and Ironwood awaited Nick by the entrance to a big hall in the Atlesian camp. Van Thorne put on his trench-coat and hid his weapons in the sleeves, but didn't put any accessories on. When he finally came, Glynda giggled a little:

-Nicky, you're cold already? It's barely evening

-I'm not cold-he said-I'm just more confident when I have this coat

-Anyway, let's get inside-said Ironwood and, with his Scroll, he opened the gate to the hall.

Inside was a huge brick of ice, just like Glynda said. At the first glance, Nick wasn't shocked. But then he noticed the monster inside-its huge, bat-like, red wings, white spikes on his back going straight to the tail, huge claws on his feet and 6 eyes, 3 on each side of the head. With that, he whistled, impressed. But also noticed something:

-I see now, why the creator of „The Book Of Grimm" had to redo the chapter about this one

-Why?-asked Port

-Because that's TOTALLY not a freaking dragon!-he yelled

-What?!-both Port and Oobleck yelled, shocked-then what the hell is it?

-It's a Wyvern, a creature easily confused with a dragon-said Van Thorne-but, I can tell you what makes it different from a dragon

Nick walked closer to the brick. Port and Oobleck followed him, while Glynda and Ironwood were discussing something on the side

-Look-Nick pointed at the Grimm's wings-you see that?

-What?-Port asked

-His wings are fused with his front limbs. That's typical for a Wyvern. Dragons have wings growing from their back like Griffons. Another thing, since when does a dragon have 6 eyes? They don't, duh. It has 2, just like we do, 6 eyes are for Wyverns always. What is also different is the behavior. Dragons won't attack, unless they are attacked or someone startles them, just like Goliaths. Wyverns always attack, even innocent people. I have other details like for example 12 times more teeth, bigger jaw, curved claws et cetera et cetera, I could talk like that all day

-That's actually right-admitted Port, actually having no idea, what Nick was talking about

-I can agree with you, Nicholas. I clearly can see the difference now-added Oobleck

-Now, let me have a look at the ice-said Nick and walked to the brick as close as he could. He put his hand on the brick. An image flew through his mind: This Wyvern gliding above the city, spawning other Grimm from the essence dripping from him and a white light, followed by a high-pitched scream „NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!". He immediately took his hand away from ice and looked back at his companions:

-The ice isn't freezing like a regular one, it also isn't wet

-So…like the dry ice?-asked Ironwood, who approached Nick with Glynda and the rest

-It's definitely not dry ice, it wouldn't survive this long with such impact inside. The color i salso different. Usually dry ice looks just like regular one but more white than crystallic. This ice…well, now I know it's definitely not ice at all, mainly because it's crystallic and you can see through it, but its color is more amber, but still it's just a minor percent of this color, it's more like more shiny version of snowy white

-Okay okay-said Glynda-do you know, what could cause something like this?

-I…personally, can't find a scientific explanation, so we have to dig into irrationalism. My mom once told me the legends of warriors, who were capable of turning everything into such blocks of ice, every last one of them had…

-Had what?-said Ironwood. He grew impatient

-Silver eyes. Yes, I remember. Each legendary warrior had silver eyes…but it's just a tale-Nick looked at all his companions. The looks on their faces were drowning in shock-What? What's so surprising? I told you they're not real. This color is just a coincidence!

-It's not-said Glynda

-What do you mean?-asked Nick

-Nick…we…I mean, Beacon…had a student with silver eyes…

Nick started to laugh nervously:

-Another great joke! I didn't know you were such jesters

But seeing that all of them are dead serious, his face became very pale:

-Who…what's her or his name?

-Rose. Ruby Rose-said Ironwood

„That must be this screaming girl" Nick thought to himself.

-Where can I find her?

-She passed out, so her uncle transported her back home-said Glynda

-And where does she live?

-Patch Island

-I'm leaving right now

-What?! You can't! Do you know, how dangerous the road to there is?

-I can handle myself

-Nicky, I know, I don't doubt that. I just want to be sure, that you're not in danger. I already mourned your mum and dad. I don't want to repeat that

But Nick didn't listen to her. He just ran out of the hall and stood by its gates, holding himself back from crying. From time to time, he has flashbacks to this horrible day, when he was locked in a shed and was forced to watch from there as his mom is raped and shot and his father is humiliated and beheaded. He only remembered the face of the leading executioner, every other one had a mask. After he saw it again in his flashback, rage consumed him again. Realising, that this may lead him to madness, he quickly pulled out a vial with green liquid from his coat and drank it. It immediately calmed him down, so he just threw the empty vial to the ground, shattering it. At this moment Glynda walked out of the hall and joined him. Nick couldn't take it anymore. He quickly walked to his aunt and hugged her again. She did the same. When Nick let her go, Goodwitch said:

-I just want you to be 100% safe. You're the only one I have left in this world

-You're right, auntie-Nick replied-but…who would go with me?

-I can ask Ironwood to send some soldiers as your escort

-No. They can barely hold a gun

-Well then…maybe Port or Oobleck?

-Auntie, please. They didn't know there was such thing as a Wyvern

-Maybe Ironwood?

-No, I don't trust him

-Then maybe me?

-I don't want to put you in danger

-I give up, Nick!-she yelled-you object my every idea! And what do you plan, huh?

-You said there was an academy here, right?

-Yes, Beacon Academy. If we rebuild Vale, it will be revived

-I could use some help from its students

-They are spread across the whole Remnant. I don't think it's a good idea

-Come on, there has to be at least one somewhere around here!

-There was one…

-What do you mean, there was?

-There was, but…she's dead…

-Great…

-She was one of the best students we had!

-Well, you're wrong, because if she was so great, then why the hell did she perish?!

-She was overpowered. Her doom was a witch, who stole the Fall maiden's powers, Cinder Fall

-SHE?!-Nick yelled-Oh no…

-But she's dead. She died while Ruby was freezing the Dragon

-It's a Wyvern!

-Whatever

-Well…what was her name?

-Pyrrha Nikos

Nick, hearing that name, almost fainted. His skin became white like chalk

-You mean…that Pyrrha Nikos?! The girl from Pumpkin Pete's cereal?!-he said, stuttering

-Ugh, why did you have to know her from this in particular?!

-I didn't even like that stuff! Do you know how fat one of the guys at the Hexmen University got after eating these cereal for 1 week? I was just stealing an empty box from him and cutting her out just to have her on my shelf-at that moment his face turned red a little-I even once kissed it when I was going to sleep

-You sick bastard!-laughed Glynda and sighed-It's such a shame she's gone. I think you would like her

Nick, hearing this, looked at her and suddenly he got an idea:

-I have an idea so crazy, it just might work

-Out with it!-Glynda urged him

-Auntie, have you heard of „The Necthro Ritual"?

-No. But…that doesn't sound very safe

-Well, it is forbidden art in The Brotherhood, but I am my father's successor, I can change the rules

-If it's forbidden then I just hope you won't hurt yourself too bad

-I hope I won't. Meet me on the top of Beacon Tower at midnight

-But…wait! Where are you going?!

-I need to prepare everything. You will just witness it! This will be magnificent!

(Here we are, 3rd chapter behind. So, now that we have some more story, I will ask again. Could you leave a review, please, after reading? I want to know that my story caught your interest or something. Soon, I will start a Twitter account or an fb page which I will soon leave a link for. There, you can ask me anything you'd like regarding RWBY, this story or some other topics, just please don't ask too personal questions. I forgot to add, that I also run an account, though I recently stopped visiting it. But I visit it from time to time so you can ask me questions, sooner or later I will reply. My nick is „Rockowiec666" and even though I run it in polish, go ahead and ask in English. That's all for now, enjoy the rest of your day)


	4. One-way journey (?)

Glynda Goodwitch was worried. This „Forbidden Art" Nick was talking about was sending shivers down her spine. It was almost midnight and she had to climb up the Beacon Tower to meet him there. She had a very bad feeling about this while she was walking towards the tower. Then, she saw that on top of it there is some light. „Something's burning?" she thought and rushed to the top. What she saw after reaching it terrified her.

The floor was a big circle made of chalk, with a star inside of it. That was no ordinary star, though. Inside it, she could clearly see a pentagon. This made her even more scared. In the center stood her nephew with his arms spread, in his full gear. Another very unusual thing were the sculpts of medallion on 5 sides of the top, each in the different triangle of the star and torches that were giving them light. She suddenly realised what Nick was planning and yelled:

-It's not a good idea, Nick!

Van Thorne looked at her, his face expressing no emotion. He then smiled a little:

-I'm so glad you could join me here and now-he said

-You have no idea, what you're doing! Step out of this star and come back! We can find a different solution!

-Too late, Glynda. The midnight is near. I need to prepare my sword

-Don't go there, Nick! No one can come back from this domain alive! It is forbidden!

-By whom, if I may ask?!-he yelled this time and looked desperately at his watch. It was 23:58

Suddenly, strong gust of wind blew through the top of the tower. The fire on the torches started to dance even faster. Nick took out his silver sword, extending the blade's size to the absolute minimum. He gently cut himself in the finger, hid the sword and pointed the finger at the shattered moon. He then kneeled on both his knees and whispered:

-Dubhenn haern am glândeal, morc'h am fhean aiesin!

Glynda stood there and watched, as the fire burning in torches changes colour to green and as the sculptures of Nick's medallion first glow and later fire a beam directly at her nephew's finger.

Nick's vision started to fade out. Everything that was surrounding him was getting foggy, and soon he couldn't see anything. He just closed his eyes and prayed for his ritual to be successful.

Glynda started to cry. Her only nephew just left for a one-way journey. She just kneeled and sobbed a few times when suddenly she heard footsteps. Oobleck and Port suddenly appeared out of nowhere:

-Glynda, what's wrong?-asked Port-where's Nick?

-He's…gone…-she said through her tears-He's gone to hell

-Don't say such hurtful words…-Port tried to cheer her up

-No! I mean that literally! He's gone to Dante's domain! He did something during this ritual and disappeared!

-Oh no-Oobleck then noticed the star on the floor-it's pentagram, the star of darkness! May the four maidens watch over poor Nick's soul…

-Three-Ironwood also suddenly appeared on the top of the tower-now only three

Meanwhile, Nick heard an odd sound. Crackling of fire, very intense. He opened his eyes. „Everything worked. I'm finally here" he thought.

Indeed, he was where he wanted to be. But every human being wishes it didn't have to be there.

Nick teleported to the place, where there was no light coming from the sky, only a weak beam from the fire below. Van Thorne stood on a big stone, which was only one of the pieces of a big island, commonly known as…well, Inferno.

Remnant's hell was meant for every soul after death. According to legends, it used to be a big island, shattered into smaller pieces, with the biggest one being in the center. Below there was a huge pit, leading straight into the lake of fire, a legitimate pit with fire in bottom. It is said, that down there reside the souls of the so-called „first sinners", whose fate is to be forever burned. Their laments were so loud and noisy, the lord of hell himself, known only by the name Dante, decided to find a better use for souls. Since then, the rules of death are simple: You definitely go to hell, if you were a good man, you're sentenced to torment, men were becoming servants at the central island, where Dante had his fortress, women were becoming „private singers" and were scattered across the whole domain on the floating stones, forced to sing for Dante and his legions of demons and minions. The sinners, however, had much better fate. They could become part of the army of hell (those are the minions), hierarchically from the weakest sin to the most hurtful one. Not much is known about Dante himself. According to the archives of The Brotherhood, Dante was once a beautiful angel, who was looking after Remnant after it was created. He wanted to walk among people to see how he should behave towards them. The amount of sins practically destroyed him. Dante lost his wings, his body was getting more and more corrupted and a hunch grew from his back. He became so hideous, he couldn't look at himself and hid forever in the darkness. Soon after that, the darkness drained away all his flesh and left only his soul, which became one with the shadow. Since then, Dante rules hell as an immaterial being looking like a regular shadow spawning demons and turning souls of sinners into hell's minions.

So…that's where Nick ended up. He couldn't stop expressing his joy. He did it! He managed to consume enough moon energy to create a teleport to hell itself. Soon, his joy attracted something unpleasant, though. At first he only heard screeching. But it was enough for him to get a hold of his golden guns.

A swarm of flying figures glided above him. They had long tails, ending with a small claw and bat-like wings. At first they looked like young Wyverns, but they were something much worse. Mainly because they were hellish creatures. Nick called them:

-Fucking pests-he said angrilly and fired all the rounds he had at the monsters. Some of them fell down, the rest escaped. Nick knew, that means something bad is gonna happen. He quickly reloaded his guns, awaiting another monster to attack. He didn't wait long. 3 very tall black-skinned creatures with two horns emerged from the nearby shadow, wielding big, black swords. Instead of feet, they had hooves. Nick immediately recognized them:

-Ah, Guardian Demons. So, there must be a whipped soul nearby

Then he heard a quiet sob from deeper in the shadow:

-Yep, definitely-he said, drawing his silver sword

Demons rushed towards Van Thorne, swinging their swords violently. Nick dodged one of the blows and countered it. He then jumped at one of the aggresors, landing on his back. With a quick swing from his sword, he decapitated the demon. The other two rushed at him again. Nick parried all their attacks and attacked by himself. With right impact he launched one of the guardians into the air, jumped after him and cut him in half. The last one was blocking all Nick's attacks but ultimately he fell off the island. After this duel Nick rushed into the shadow, lighting his path with a small flame semblance coming from his hand. A small soul was lying on the ground, crying. It was definitely male, because it had torn black suit on him. When he heard footsteps, he started to cry:

-No! Please! No more! I beg you!

-Calm down-said Nick, grabbed the soul by its spine and put it on his feet-Now talk

-What? A living being? In the kingdom? How?

-Nicholas Van Thorne, Brotherhood

-I see now…-the man was clearly in shock-So you Hexmen really were practising forbidden art?

-It's an emergency business. I'm looking for a girl, she got here recently. Maybe you know, on which island does she sing?

-No, I don't see when a new female arrives. Lord doesn't allow us to peek from his windows

-Damn! I thought I was close…

-Maybe you should ask The Boatman?

-Who?

-The guy who transports females from Lord's fortress to their islands. He is a soul, just like all of us, yet he received different fate. If you look really close at the shore of the island and whistle three times, he should arrive. He'll definitely be more helpful, he knows everyone around here. But be careful! He got this job as a transporter only because his lamentations never ended. You'll have to be very patient to get an information from him…

-Thank you-said Nick, shaking the soul's hand-you really helped me out

-No-replied the soul-I should have thanked you first. You didn't do much, but it still was something, and I'm grateful for that. So long now, friend

-So long-replied Nick as the unknown soul drifted back to the shadow. He walked to the shore, happy once again. Just like the soul said, he stood as close to the pit as he could, looked straight in front of him and whistled three times. For a second nothing was happening, but then he saw it. A small boat was floating above the pit, very slow. At this moment Nick noticed the mentioned Boatman.

The boat looked just like a normal one, except for the fact that it was floating high as hell (literally, bad pun again). The Boatman was quite unique, though. Nick couldn't see his face, only a black robe and that sad voice:

-Why? Why you had to do this to me? Why?!-he could clearly hear the Boatman lamenting

The boat arrived in two minutes. When it was close enough, Nick jumped right in it. The Boatman slowly turned around to him and sniffled:

-Where?-he just asked without any emotions

-I'm looking for a girl…

-A male? Alive?-he said, noticing that Nick isn't another soul of a female

-Please, brother, help me-said Nick, pretending to be desperate. The Boatman looked straight at him, shocked

-What did you call me?-he asked. He seemed touched

-Brother?

-Brother…I have never heard such a word from any being-he said and set off from the island

The Boatman wasn't lamentating while cruising. He was just repeating the word „brother" with joy. Nick suddenly realised something:

-Wait! You don't know where I want to go!

The Boatman looked at him:

-My apologies, I was just so happy I forgot about my duties. So, where to go?

-I'm looking for a girl. She was dragged here recently. Long, red hair, green eyes, tall, slim

-Oh no-The Boatman was scared-The…The Red Damsel?

-That's how they call Pyrrha here?

-She's not Pyrrha anymore. The Lord locked her in a cage at his fortress. She is forced to sing only for him as a leading voice. The demons call her The Red Damsel

-Can you take me to Dante's fortress then?

-No-The Boatman replied-I can't. Lord doesn't allow me to go there if I don't have a female. And you probably won't trick him, as he can feel when the soul isn't out of the body yet. I can, however, take you to The Damsel's island, not far from the fortress where she was until the demons took her to the Lord

-Do it. I think there might be some important clues

The Boatman just nodded and moved his boat. After about half an hour he stopped. Nick jumped out of the boat to the nearest island and drew both his swords:

-You're a Hexman, right?-The Boatman asked

-That's correct-Nick replied

-Then you probably heard of The Eye of Existence?

-That's how Dante and his thugs call the device that navigates them through their own domain?

-Yeah. It can also teleport around here on short distances. This island is filled with The Second Choir…they may have it. If you get it, use it to get into the fortress. Just place it on your eye and look at where you want to go

-Second Choir…The Eye of Existence…Throne Demons! Finally some entertainment!-Said Nick, swinged his swords and hid the steel one

-You sound like Lord-said the Boatman

-Get the fuck outta here already!-yelled Nick

-With pleasure!-said the Boatman, scared and moved his boat away fast, disappearing in the process. When Nick turned around, he noticed the mentioned demons coming in his direction. They looked kind of like Guardian Demons, but they had five long horns, a big armor, axes and shields. Nick was prepared for a battle.

Those demons had a clever gimmick, which Nick wasn't expecting, though. When one of them swinged his axe, a flaming disc came from it right at Van Thorne's direction. Surprised Nick barely dodged the projectile to the left:

-That's how you wanna play?!-he yelled and snapped fingers on his spare hand, lighting it-so be it

For the next full minute Nick was shooting fire beam from his hand right at the demons. It killed 3 of them, while the other 3 remained untouched. Nick snapped his fingers again and pointed his finger at one of the demons. It fired a thin stream of white light, which went inside the hellspawn's head. Nick then pointed his finger at the demon next to the one attacked and they immediately started fighting. The one that was mind controlled won. But Nick just clenched his fist, and the demon's head just exploded. Only one remained. It charged at Van Thorne, trying to hit him with his shield. Nick just jumped over him and cut his opponent in the back of the leg. After that he snapped his fingers again and touched the ground. A circle of purple, shining symbols appeared on the ground. The demon froze to the ground, unable to move. Nick just jumped at him and cut him in half. The symbols disappeared, so Nick started to search the demon's armor to find the device. When he finally found it, he was disappointed:

-It surely looked better in the description-he said, curving his lips-let's see if it's still working

The eye of existence was basically just a golden amulet with a blue crystal in the center. It actually couldn't be used as jewellery, it was too ugly. But for a device? Perfect! Nick put the amulet to his eye and looked to his right. He could clearly see a bigger island, with a huge castle made of black brick. He felt breezing of air for a second and when he took the device away he was already near the gates. He took a deep breath, hid his sword and pushed the door.

And then there was darkness.

Darkness so overwhelming, even Nick was unable to see anything. It blew right in his face, covering everything he could see. He walked deeper into it with a feeling simillar to fear. He heard the gate shutting behind him. He then blinked a few times, triggering his Hexman sight, which allowed him to see in the dark.

There was almost nothing in the room he was in. Almost. A few steps from him was a long table with chairs, where he saw sitting demons. They looked even weirder. Their horns were twisted and curly, they had leather armors, two swords attached to their hips and huge, bat-like wings. They were looking at Nick with angry, red eyes, while eating something:

-You're not welcome here, mortal-suddenly Nick heard an echoing voice-leave this place, and I shall try to be merciful

-My name is Nicholas Van Thorne, and I'm a Hexman!-Nick said loudly to the shadow

-I know who you are-the shadow replied-and you surely also know who I am…

-Dante-said Nick, interrupting the voice-I didn't come here to discuss shit. I just want to free one of your souls back where it belongs

-You dare enter MY home, destroy MY guards, spoil MY obedient souls, steal MY eye, interrupt ME, call ME just by MY name and demand something?!-the shadow sounded angry, but immediately he calmed down-You're a rebel. And I like rebellious beings. What soul do you wish to free?

-The Red Damsel-Nick replied

The demons burst out laughing, almost falling off from their chairs, but the shadow ultimately yelled:

-Silence, morons! Van Thorne, your request can be fulfilled. I won't lie, I'm doing this with pain in my non-existent heart, she was the best singer I had so far

-Where is she?

-To your left, on the end of the hall. She couldn't hear you, because the cage blocks the sounds from everyone outside unless I allow so. Now go and get out of here, before I change my mind

Nick rushed to the left as fast as he could. His heart couldn't beat faster than it already was. When he finally saw the cage, he opened it and moved inside.

And there…he found her.

Pyrrha was just as he imagined, judging from her look on the box of cereal he saw at the university. Long, red hair, green eyes, yet not pale green like his, slim figure and pale skin. But there was something missing…

„That smile" he thought to himself. In fact, something completely opposite was happening. Pyrrha was on her knees, tears dripping from her eyes. Her lips were nothing more than pure sadness and pain. What was even adding more salt was the fact, that through her sobbing, Nick could hear the lyrics of one of his favourite songs sang by this beautiful girl:

-„You took my heart, deceived me right from the start"-she sang, sobbing even more after these words. After a little later she sang next words-„You showed me dreams, I wished they turned into real"

-„You broke your promise, and made me realise, it was all just a lie"-Nick interrupted her, ending the chorus for her. Pyrrha raised her eyes at him, her tears stopped to leave her eyes:

-Jaune?-she said-is that really you?

„Who's Jaune?" Nick asked himself, confused. But he didn't have time to think about it. He just approached the girl and took her by the arm. They just walked out of the cage. Pyrrha didn't seem to be even a bit bothered by it. She was just calling Nick by this weird name. When they were right before the gates, Nick heard Dante's voice:

-Van Thorne!-he said-just one thing before you go…

-What is it?

-You thought I'll let you walk out of here without something in return?-Dante laughed-kill him

Nick turned around immediately. He could hear the demons with wings charging right at him. At this moment one of his natures overwhelmed him. His eyes changed colour to a very dark red one. His pupils became even more narrow. He just drew his silver sword and jumped. After literally 50 seconds the demons were disemboweled, their wings torn apart and heads cut in half. After that, Nick's eyes went back to their normal colour. Dante just laughed loudly:

-You're so much fun, Nick! Too bad you have to be devoured

And then Dante started spawning some other demons, but they were completely different. Grey skinned, looking like skeletons, savage, without weapons. But then a beam of light hit those creatures-Pyrrha was standing next to him with a lantern in her hands:

-Let's go-she said. She wasn't crying anymore. She seemed like she became herself again

Nick was backing off with the girl, shooting the grey demons from the golden guns. A little later they were already running outside the fortress, using the eye of existence to navigate through hell. Sooner they finally arrived at the island, where Nick was spawned after the ritual:

-Ok, we're here-he said-I'll open the portal and we'll be free. Just give me 5 minutes

-Wait!-she yelled, tired of running-who…

-There is no time! I will explain everything later. Just call me when you see some demons, got it?

Pyrrha looked at him for a moment, unsure what to do…and then she started to tear the dress off her body. Underneath she had an armor fused with casual clothes, mainly a red skirt. Also, Nick noticed a shield and a spear on her back. He looked with his eyes wide like never before for the first time:

-I don't think we…

-Got it-she just quickly said, drew her spear and moved away a little bit from him, scouting the other island from far away. Nick turned around, closed his eyes and started the spell:

-Vi Veri Veniversum Vivus Vici…

Pyrrha's head was nothing more but a big pile of questions. Who the hell is that guy? Where did he come from? Why did he want to save her? She thought that back there, when Cinder shot her in the chest, all hope is gone forever. And yet…someone still has her in memory. But the most important question she was asking herself was: Is this guy Jaune's friend or something? The questions flew through her mind, but she was forced to pause them when she suddenly noticed a giant demon coming in their direction. It could have been a regular demon she could probably defeat but it was something much, much worse. It was an elite demon, created by Dante from pure hellfire, burning the souls of the first sinners. This monster became the general of demonic slave keepers, usually doing all the tortures by himself. Pyrrha was afraid of him. WAS. At that moment, when she saw him she felt something…different. Hate? How? Pyrrha wasn't someone who could hate, yet after all this pain the fiery demon caused her, she just shouted his name:

-Malacoda!

-What?!-Nick turned around, scared. When he noticed the mentioned demon, he just threw his silver sword to Pyrrha-Nikos, catch!

Pyrrha caught the sword and swinged it a few times:

-And what am I supposed to do with this?!

-Use the light to make him leave the fire armor. When he turns black slash him with that blade as hard as you can! I must be sure we get out of here alive

Pyrrha jumped at Malacoda and hit him in the face with the lantern. It worked, demon's fire faded away, leaving him vulnerable. Pyrrha's hate for the monster grew to the maximum and she started to slash the monster with beastly rage. When she was finally done and almost nothing remained of the hell army general, she looked at her hands, covered entirely in blood, which later dripped to the ground. She then heard Nick yelling:

-Pyrrha! The portal is opened! Give me the sword and let's go!

The girl dropped the lantern, threw the sword back to her savior and jumped with him through the portal. For a second she didn't see anything but darkness. Later they both hit some kind of floor. Pyrrha landed next to Nick on the top of the Beacon Tower, where she died, and where her savior took her. She got up on her knees and noticed, that Van Thorne is still lying on the floor, without moving an inch. She crawled closer to him. Nick smiled at her:

-You alright?-he said

-Yes, I think. Are you okay?

-Yeah, just a little bit tired…

At this moment he passed out. But then Pyrrha heard footsteps and after a minute she heard familliar voices:

-There he is! He's alive!

-Impossible! How did he…

-Is that…

-Pyrrha! You're alive

Goodwitch, Ironwood, Oobleck and Port heard the sound of the portal and came right away. Glynda immediately rushed to her nephew with Ironwood, while Oobleck and Port took care of Pyrrha:

-He's okay-said Goodwitch-it's just a pass out

-Let's take him to the hospital. After what he has done, he deserves to not catch a cold…

(I'm terribly sorry for such a long break. There were 3 reasons: I was out of town skiing in Italy and also I had this weird thing in my mind, which I call „4th Chapter Crisis". You see, I already tried to write something by my own and whenever I was at chapter 4, I had last doubts if I should keep on writing. Sometimes it resulted in a complete abandonment of an idea. I also had „Tabula Rasa syndrome", which is basically that moment, when I know what I want to write, I sit by the computer, click the right things…and I suddenly feel empty, without any idea. But this time you witnessed as I defeat those difficulties and get through the unlucky 4th chapter. It is done, now I know that I want to continue this fanfiction, still with those naive dreams that Rooster Teeth will one day notice this pile of idiotism and maybe change their cancerous ways of dealing with RWBY characters and plot. I also want to say, that my best friend will soon release a fanart of Nicholas Van Thorne, which I will set as a cover image for the story. I will also be doing a Q&A chat on Skype as soon as I get it back. When I will have it, I will tell you my nickname. Oh, and no facecam or calls, because I want to be anonymous for a little longer and I'm too lazy to buy a microphone. Author out, have a nice day)


	5. Back on the road!

Nick opened his eyes. He still felt a little sleepy and too heavy to stand up from the bed. He rolled his eyes around the room he was in. At first he almost didn't see anything because of the very bright light hurting his eyes. But a little later everything was visible.

Nick landed in a big room filled with lots of beds, with white walls and small cupboards next to the bed. It kind of looked like a sleeping room for soldiers or a hospital but there was just something different about it. Yet Van Thorne didn't even want to think about it, he just wanted his inner lazybones to get lost and be able to finally get up. Fortunately for him, it happened quickly. He slowly got up without leaving the bed-he just sat with his legs under the quilt and his back on the pillow, which he raised a little. Then he noticed that he's not alone…

Pyrrha sat right in front of his bed on a small stool. Her eyes were closed and her head was hanging loose. She had her armor on, yet she also covered herself with…

„Is that my coat?" Nick thought, noticing the issue „Wait..." he thought a bit embarrased and looked at himself. He only had his red t-shirt on and underwear. „What the fuck?" he asked himself and shuddered a little. But it wasn't quiet enough because it immediately caused the beautiful girl with the red hair to wake up:

-Oh, you're up-she said

-Yeah-Nick just replied

Pyrrha then noticed she was sleeping under his coat and she began to desperately shake it off her, yet also not let it hit the floor:

-I'm sorry I…

-Shhhh…-Nick silenced her and smiled politely-it's okay. But tell me, where are my pants? I definitely had them on when we went through the portal

Pyrrha grinned in awkwardness of the situation and giggled a little:

-Well…I…you know…ummmmm…

-You just couldn't resist, could you?-laughed Nick

-I didn't...-Pyrrha suddenly blushed and stuttered a little-I only took your coat!

-Excuses, excuses everywhere-said Van Thorne, still laughing-it's okay though. I get it

-What?-asked Pyrrha, confused

-Nevermind-sighed ironically Nick and giggled

At this moment The door opened and Glynda Goodwitch walked in. She had Nick's army pants in her hands and also another piece of clothing, which he didn't recognize:

-Your clothes, Nicky-she said

-Thanks, auntie-replied Van Thorne and immediately put on his pants. He had a feeling that they were washed. After that curiosity defeated his common sense. He took the other piece of clothing. It was a simple white sweater with a zipper.

-I brought you Ironwood's old sweater. I hope it fits-said Goodwitch

Nick put the sweater on. It did fit perfectly.

-Well…what do you think?-asked his aunt

-It itches!-yelled Van Thorne (it was his first thought after wearing it)

-You'll get used to it-laughed Glynda-What do you think, mrs. Nikos?

-Well…he looks kinda cute-giggled Pyrrha

-Knock that off!-cried Nick

The young girl then walked up to Van Thorne and helped him put the coat on. When he had it on, the sweater stopped itching

-Better?-asked Pyrrha, smiling

-I think so-replied Nick in a calm tone and looked at his aunt-why did you give me that sweater anyway?

-Don't be ridiculous!-laughed Glynda-don't you know how freezing it is on Patch Island at this time of year?

-What do you mean?-asked Pyrrha confused

-You didn't tell her yet?-said Goodwitch. It was clear she was surprised

-Well…

-You'll tell her this during breakfast-his aunt interrupted him-let's go already

Glynda began to walk out of the room:

-Oh, and don't forget to put the boots on-she said right before she walked past the doors

-Damn it, auntie!-yelled Van Thorne

-Well…she is your aunt, you know how they act-said Pyrrha

-She's too overprotective, you know?

-Yeah…by the way, what did she mean when she mentioned Patch Island?

-Let's go get something to eat already

About 15 minutes later Pyrrha and Nick sat by a table in the cafeteria of the Atlesian military camp. Nick only had a can of cola in his hands and was already emptying it. Pyrrha held a bottle of water in her hands. They were already after a meal-they both ate a small sandwich:

-So…Nick, right?-asked Nikos. Van Thorne just nodded in response-right…what did you mean with Patch Island?

-Well…-Nick took a sip of his cola-that's a story which started a little while ago actually. I need to ask you, Pyrrha. What is the last thing you remember before you landed in hell?

-Well…I was on top of Beacon Tower, trying to stop that witch…

-Cinder Fall, right? Well…she won't be an issue, I assure you

-But she has the Fall Maiden's powers!

-The activity of the four Maidens was not registered in a long time. Last sign of a so-called magical attack was heard here. My job is to get a hold of the situation. I presume Cinder is dead and the Maiden's powers are gone. But look Pyrrha, I'm a Hexman, a mutant, a disgusting stowaway, you name it. My job is to protect people from the Grimm and from each other. But I can't protect them from inside, if they are not safe from the outside

-What do you mean?-asked Pyrrha, not sure if she understands

-Have you seen any Grimm on the top of the Beacon Tower?

-Well…a couple of Griffons were flying around…

-Anything else?

-There was this huge beast…like a dragon…

-Close enough-smiled Nick-it's a Wyvern

-Well…what about it?

-Seconds after your „death" something or someone caused a huge wave of aura energy to flow across the whole city. My aunt, Ironwood and the Beacon teachers suspect it was caused by a warrior with silver eyes. Do you know ANYONE with such eye color?

Pyrrha's eyes became wider. She opened her mouth and almost spilled her water:

-Ruby?-she asked

-Who the hell is this Ruby you keep talking about?!-Nick grew impatient

-She was my friend. Mine and my whole team. Her teammates were a little weird, but she was ok

-So she might actually feel comfortable around you? Good

-But what are you planning?!

-I want to go to Patch Island and find Ruby. She needs to unfreeze the Wyvern so that I may kill it and prevent the rest of Grimm from going here

-And that's what you need me for?-Pyrrha was quite irritated

-I thought so…-replied Nick-But now I see a different reason for what I've done. You probably wouldn't understand

Somehow Pyrrha felt sorry for Van Thorne. She thought he is alone and he just wants to travel with someone on his mission. She could not possibly think of any other reason, yet there was one deep inside Nick's mind.

A little later Nick and Pyrrha were sitting on his motorcycle. Nikos was scared because her new friend didn't have a helmet nor for her nor for himself. Glynda Goodwitch and Ironwood walked up to Nick's bike:

-I booked you a ferry to the Island-said Ironwood-just mention your names and they should let you in

-Thank you, general-Pyrrha replied

-Nicky-said Glynda-be careful when you get there. The forests out there are filled with Beowolves

-Just Beowolves?-Nick laughed and looked at the road-ready, Pyrrha?

-Yeah…I guess-the girl replied

And so Nick's engine roared again and later they both were already on the road. Goodwitch and Ironwood were waving at them:

-Glynda-said Ironwood, grinning a bit troubled-does Nick know who is Ruby's father?

-Oh god-Goodwitch suddenly realised-It's going to be a mess…

-YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE-HAWWWW!-screamed Nick when his motorcycle jumped on a little hunch on the road

-NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!-screamed Pyrrha right behind him at the same time, hugging him tightly with her eyes closed

They were riding very fast, practically making the ruins of the city disappear behind them. They were already on the road for about 2 hours, if they kept the speed they would arrive at the ferry station in the afternoon.

And so they did. After 4 hours of constant speed, with Pyrrha nearly puking, scared shitless and Nick thrilled to the maximum they already saw a huge ferry and a small harbor. Atlesian soldiers were walking around with crates and weapons in their hands. Nick also noticed some knights. When the robots noticed his motorcycle they pointed their guns at them. Pyrrha immediately raised her hands:

-Intruder. Identify yourself-Nick heard the robotic voice

-Nicholas Van Thorne and Pyrrha Nikos. We have a reservation for a cruise signed by general James Ironwood-said the Hexman, waving his hand at the military

The Atlesian knights put their weapons down and moved to the side:

-Confirmed. Sorry for trouble, mr. Thorne. Have a nice day-he heard robotic voice again

-VAN Thorne, trashcans-Nick corrected them and switched his motorcycle on again to get on the ship

Nick's motorcycle drove onto the ferry and stopped. The Hexman and the girl left the machine and jumped straight onto the nearby bench. After a while one of the Atlesian soldiers approached them:

-Sir, madame-he said, saluting-The cruise will take about 4 to 5 hours. I suggest you move to the lower deck, where a more comfortable room awaits you. Everything is paid off by mr. Ironwood so feel free to ask for whatever you want to drink or eat

-Alright then-replied Van Thorne and got up from the bench-come Pyrrha

The two moved to the lower deck. There was a small room to their left with two sofas and a small table. They sat on them and got more comfortable

-So…you want something to drink?-asked Van Thorne

But then they heard knocking to their doors. Nick opened them-the same soldier stood behind the doors with a big bottle in his hands:

-Sir, mr. Ironwood asked us to buy this for you as a present for your arrival-he said and passed the bottle to Nick. Van Thorne looked at the bottle surprised

-How convenient-he said, smiling-Ferghino, the best champagne Vacuo has to offer. Thank you, soldier. You can go

-Yes sir-the soldier replied and saluted. After that he left the room

Nick looked around the room and found 2 glasses for wine. He poured the champagne into them and passed one of the glasses to Pyrrha. She took it gently and smiled. Nick sat on his sofa and raised his glass:

-So…what do we drink for?-he asked

-I…don't know…maybe…for still living?-asked Pyrrha ironically

-No, I think I know-said Nick and raised his glass even higher-I propose this toast for you, Pyrrha. For you appearing in my dreams, for your photo I still have in my wallet which I cut out from cereal box, for your beautiful eyes, smile and sweet voice. For the opportunity to watch you sleep. And for Jaune, who is the luckiest man in the world.

Nick emptied his glass at one go. Pyrrha on the other hand was still looking at him. She was so touched by what he said. Her face was almost as red as her hair, her smile was wide from ear to ear. But seconds after that she got a bit confused. She just emptied the glass quickly and looked at him with a questioning look:

-How do you know Jaune?-she asked

-You mentioned that name a couple of times when we were getting out of hell. To prevent you from asking: No, I don't know him personally, but I'll be happy to meet him

-Yeah, about back then…-said Pyrrha

-Well…what is it?

-I was so filled with questions I already forgot to say the most important thing-Pyrrha got up from her sofa and sat on the one, where Nick was-I…I can't possibly thank you enough. What you did for me…It's just unimaginable. It's funny, you're the most important person for me now and yet I barely even know you-after those words she grabbed Van Thorne by the hand. Suddenly an image flew through her head: Fire. Fire everywhere. Screams and cries in the distance. And then…a maniacal laughter, very loud, roaming everywhere. She opened her mouth, scared. But she didn't let go of Nick's hand. She only looked deeper into his eyes. A tear started to form in her eye. Van Thorne released his hand gently from her delicate grip and washed the tear off her cheek. He then smiled and looked deep into her eyes:

-Try to catch some sleep, okay?-he said in a subtle tone-I'm gonna take a nap too

-A…Alright…-she said, stuttering. After that she returned to her sofa and layed down on it. She turned back to Nick and closed her eyes.

Nick was shocked, yet happy. He could clearly feel that Pyrrha knows how he felt back in Gwynbleidd, when he witnessed those horrible events. But that would mean that everything his father taught him, about mankind being „nothing different from Grimm, but prettier" and everything…it was a lie. Everything. Nick, however, was not sure if his thesis was true. He didn't even feel his human nature taking control over his aura, making him actually feel something. He just got up, took off his coat and covered Pyrrha with it. Then he just lied down on his sofa and immediately fell asleep.

But Pyrrha wasn't sleeping. She was also shocked but because of how hurtful this image was. She felt very sorry for Nick and finally she understood why he was so nice to her, without even thinking about himself. However, she could only speculate about the reason he dragged her out of hell. She didn't even care that much. What she was grateful for was the fact, that she is free from Dante and Malacoda's terror and suffering. When she made sure Nick was already asleep, she got up quietly and walked up to him with his coat in her hands. „If I give it back to him, he'll probably be stubborn and will get up again" thought Pyrrha. After a while, she got a crazy idea. She quietly sat on Nick's sofa, and slowly laid down right behind him. She covered herself and Nick with his coat, moved his head a little and planted a kiss on the Hexman's forehead. After that she just hugged him tightly, clutching her head to his arm and closed her eyes. Nick was sleeping as if he was dead, he couldn't possibly feel that gesture.

After a while a voice could be heard in the ferry's deck. It was one of the soldiers calling out Nick:

-Sir!-he was saying loudly-we're here

-Huh? W…What?-Nick was mumbling with his eyes closed. But after a couple of seconds he opened them…and noticed Pyrrha with her head in his arm. His eyes could not possibly be wider. He then looked at the soldier, who was clearly feeling awkward. Just like Nick, actually. He gently touched Pyrrha's arm and pushed it a little:

-Mmmmmmmm…but I'm comfortable like that-she mumbled quietly

-Give us a minute, please-Van Thorne looked at the soldier-you can take the rest of the champagne for your comrades

-Yes sir-said the soldier and smiled. He took the bottle of champagne and walked out of the room

Pyrrha woke up completely about 20 minutes later. When she discovered how she's positioned, she blushed embarrased. Nick was just smiling at her in a confused way. They left the lower deck and got on the bike. Nick started to check the engine before switching it on:

-Nick?

-Yes Pyrrha?

-I hope you didn't…feel uncomfortable or too awkward…

-No-replied Nick, smiling at the girl nicely-In fact, thank you for that

-You…You're welcome-said Pyrrha, blushing even more

Van Thorne's motorcycle drove off the ferry and started to ride across the beach at Patch Island. After about 2 hours they stopped at the edge of some kind of forest. A few steps away from them stood a small house made entirely out of wood and stone. Nick could smell the smoke coming out of its chimney:

-Think this is it?-he asked Pyrrha

-I hope-she replied and got off the vehicle

-No, you stay here-Van Thorne stopped the girl-If something happens to me, you switch on the engine and go back to the harbor as fast as you can, got it?

-But…

-No butts-Nick interrupted her-got it?

Pyrrha just nodded and got back on Nick's motorcycle. Van Thorne got off from it and quickly walked up to the door of the house. He knocked three times. At first there was no reaction, so Nick knocked again, this time harder.

-I'm coming!-he heard loud male voice yelling from the other side and footsteps-finally, I thought no one will…

At that moment the door opened. In front of Nick stood a tall adult man with short blonde hair and with a little amount of beard. Van Thorne immediately recognized the man. His teeth grinded in rage, his eyes took darker color:

-Will what?-he said with very evil tone of his voice

The terrified man tried to slam the door at Nick's face, but the Hexman was faster. He quickly kicked the door, knocking the man inside. After that, he crossed the doorstep and shut the door behind him:

-Taiyang Xiao Long. It's been a while, wasn't it?-said Nick, his lips changing their expression to an evil smile

-What sorcery is this?!-said the mentioned man, barely standing after Nick's kick-how do you know my name?!

-Oh, you've got a very short memory, buddy-replied Van Thorne and walked up closer to Taiyang-don't you remember that cursed day, when your team came to the Gwynbleidd village to organise a rescue?

-What?-the blonde man was shocked someone still remembers that

-Your order was clear: search everywhere and rescue everyone who survived. You looked inside the ruins of a certain shed. There was one kid who survived there, yet you didn't help him. Just like the rest of your teammates…

-What are you talking about?! Who are you?!-Taiyang was frightened

-Look me in the eyes-replied Nick and took off his sunglasses-now you recognize me?

-Oh god…-said the blonde adult, his eyes growing wider like his mouth-it…it's you

-Yes, Taiyang. Now, in my right sleeve there is a hidden sword. 40,5 inches long, siderite steel mixed with meteorite. Thin like a sheet of paper, sharp like Nevermore's quill. Give me one good reason to not use it right here and right now on you

Taiyang's face was still in shock, yet he somehow pulled himself together. With a shaking voice, he said:

-I have no right to stop you from your will. If you want my blood, then feel free to do so. But take heed. The two strongest members of team STRQ are still alive and they won't rest until they catch you. Besides, you asked me what did I mean in the beginning. I was calling Ironwood to ask him to send some soldiers to search for my younger daughter, she left home and doesn't come back

-Your daughter?-Nick got intrigued. He started to have doubts if he should kill Taiyang Xiao Long

-Yes. My sweet, little Ruby. She's my only reminder of my beloved Summer…if you'll kill me, I will finally be reunited with her. But we would both be worried about poor Ruby…

-Ruby is your daughter?-Nick's eyes went wide again. He has never experienced such shock

-Yes. Why do you keep asking that? Aren't you supposed to take my life?

-I won't. You and your team did me wrong, but it was nothing compared to what happened the day before your „rescue". It will take time for me to forgive you, but we're on a good way

-I…I understand-Taiyang silenced for a moment-hey, you want some coffee? I just brewed some, it should be still warm

-If that's not a problem…-replied Nick

Taiyang walked into the kitchen. Nick followed him. The blonde man took out two mugs and filled them with black liquid. He passed one of them to Nick and they both sat by the table.

-So Summer is dead?

-Yeah…we still don't know what caused her death, but maybe it's better not to know it. She has a gravestone at the western edge of the forest

-And you? Are you still teaching at Signal?

-Yeah, me and Qrow. But he kind of disappeared right now. I have no idea where he is either

-Qrow? He's still active?

-Kind of

-What about Raven?

-Ugh, don't even get me started on her-Taiyang seemed disgusted by that name-she's hiding, no one knows from whom and why. I, personally, don't care about it anymore. I'd rather spend my time with our daughter, thank you very much

-So you also have a daughter with Raven?

-Yes, the older one

-Hmmmmm…you know, that gives me an idea. It turns out we're both looking for Ruby. But let's say that I'll do the searching thing. Mind if I look around her room a little?

-Yeah, no problem-replied Taiyang-if this will get you anywhere closer to her, then I'm okay with that. Last door in front of you in the corridor

Nick got up from his chair, finished his coffee and walked away deeper into the house. He went through the mentioned door and triggered his Hexman senses, which allowed him to immediately see any clues. Unfortunately, the only thing he saw was a small piece of paper. Something was written on it:

Dad,

I'm leaving. I don't know when I will come back. I need to find answers for all these events. Take care of Yang and Zwei, visit mom and say hi from me to her. I love you,

Ruby

„Nothing" thought Nick and tossed the letter back where it was. „What other clue may possibly be here? There has to be, no one is that of a perfectionist". But lack of evidence and clues caused Nick to finally give up and bring back his normal senses. He stepped out of Ruby's room, pissed off about the results.

And then…he heard something. A very quiet sob was coming from the room to his left. In fact it was so quiet, no one could hear it. But as a Hexman, Nick's senses are 20 times more enhanced than simple man's. He slowly walked to the door as quiet as he could. They were slightly opened, so Nick just pushed them gently and looked from behind them.

In the room there was a small table, a wardrobe and a big bed by the window. Van Thorne, however didn't care about the surroundings. What caught his attention was the person, who was lying in the bed.

It was a tall girl with long blonde hair and lilac eyes. She was halfly hidden under the quilt and the only things that Van Thorne could see was her brown t-shirt…and tears. Lots of tears. The floor seemed to be drowning in them. The girl's sad face made Nick feel something very, very odd. He could clearly hear his heart beating at least 4 times faster than ever…and it was at this moment he noticed the most probable reason for her to cry. She had no right arm. There was just a small bandage covering the edge of what used to be her limb. Nick's heart…it broke at that moment. All the common sense, everything he ever thought was right…it was gone. He sneaked through the door and, careful not to attract the girl's attention he started to walk towards her. Suddenly, he heard snarling right in front of him. He looked under his feet and saw a tiny, black and white dog with even smaller black eyes. His snarling caught the girl's attention. The lilac eyes looked directly at Van Thorne:

-Go away-she said through her tears

At first Nick wanted to actually do it. But there was something about this incredibly beautiful girl, that he gave up on that idea. He just approached her a little closer, using his mind control semblance to make the dog move away and sat on the edge of her bed:

-Are you deaf?-she said. Nick could clearly feel irritation, yet he didn't even think of going back-leave me alone or I'll call my daddy

-He knows I'm here-replied Van Thorne-you must be Ruby's sister. What's your name?

-Does it even matter?-the lilac eyes replied, without looking at Nick

At that moment something came into Van Thorne's mind. „Maybe she needs a shoulder to cry?" he thought. He gently raised his hand and was moving it towards the girl's hair. But he didn't reach it. He suddenly felt paralyzing pain between his legs. He looked down-the blonde girl's hand was squeezing him there with incredible force. Nick swore, he could feel his voice strings going into a higher tone. „Plan B, Plan B!" he thought and was about to do so, but then the girl let go of his crotch. His voice strings were slowly going back to normal:

-Hands off-said the blonde girl

-Ouch. That was…tricky-replied Nick, his voice was a little distorted but it sounded already normal

-And yet you're still here…-said the blonde girl, still a little angry at Nick

-Ekhm…-grunted Van Thorne, rebalancing his voice tone. He then noticed the girl's dog walking back to where he was sleeping before he was mind controlled:

-Zwei, where have you been?-said the girl to the dog. Nick noticed a sad smile forming on her face

The dog just looked first at her with sadness and later at Van Thorne with fear:

-Come on, doge. I didn't hurt you that bad-said Nick

The girl turned her face at him. But the eyes weren't lilac. Instead, Nick was looking at rageful, blood red ones. This reminded him of how he sometimes loses control over his nature. The monster hidden inside of him always unleashes when he is ultimately pissed off, making him a killing machine, without the ability to distinguish good from evil. It was impossible to tell, but he got really scared. He thought that the girl, even though she has only one arm, would kill him right away, but how? He was even more scared about that. But the girl's eyes suddenly got back into the normal color, but what she said, sounded also very angry:

-What did you do to him?

-Just a little mind control semblance-replied Van Thorne, actually scared

At that moment, he just felt like taking off the sunglasses. After he did so, the blonde girl's eyes went wider. Zwei's ears moved down in fear:

-You…you're…you're a Hexman?-said the blonde girl

-Yes. My name is Nicholas Van Thorne, but call me Nick-replied the Hexman-and you're…

-Yang-interrupted him the girl-Yang Xiao Long

She tried to reach her hand out to him, but…there was no hand. She suddenly started to cry. And then Nick got an idea:

-Who did this to you?

-You probably don't know him…

-Maybe. But his name would be much helpful…

-Adam

-Adam who?

-I don't know!-she yelled and started to cry even more. Her head lowered down. Nick gently embraced her. She didn't resist this time. While Nick was hugging her, he started to slowly take off her bandage (come on, get this dirty thought out of your mind Van Thorne isn't THAT perverted). He looked at the wound under it:

-Clean cut. Probably the Wilt…

-You…recognize that one?

-My great-grandfather used to work for a couple of organisations, including the White Fang. It was the only organisation, where he noticed someone with such blade. You were right, it was Adam Taurus. I've read this guy's file in Vale police archives

-And?

-Typical terrorist. But stupid enough, to believe in his blasphemous philosophy. Anyway, enough about the scum. We need to do something about your hand…

Nick examined Yang's arm even further and jumped to a conclusion:

-I can restore it

Yang laughed nervously:

-Are you kidding?

-It's possible. I just need a couple of ingredients and your patience

Nick left the girl's room and started to run around the house. Finally, he found Taiyang:

-Hey, you've gotta help me!

-What is it?-asked Ruby's father

-Do you have alchemic items in this house?

-Yeah, a couple of them in the kitchen. What do you need?

-I need to brew an incense from the venom of Rapier Wasps mixed with the Red Sap. Can you get those for me?

-Yeah, sure. I'll be back in a minute

Taiyang disappeared for a moment and later he came back with two vials, one with yellow liquid, the other one with pink syrup.

Nick took both the ingredients and mixed them both together. They made a great mix. He then took the incense in a small glass to the girl's room. Yang awaited.

Van Thorne lightened the new compound in the glass. Its smoke filled the room immediately. Yang at first was coughing, but Nick stopped her:

-No. Breathe it inside

Yang stopped coughing. Instead she was breathing normally. Nick then took her by the hand and whispered:

-„Heal this flesh, for it can give this forsaken world much more than even Dante can imagine. And I plead thee for this to happen, for I am the one, who stopped thine soul from eternal torment"

On Yang's wound a big, grey light flashed, lighting a big part of her room. Zwei hid in fear under the bed. The smoke was intensifying along with its smell. Taiyang Xiao Long walked at that moment to the room. Unfortunately, he saw as his older daughter screams as if she was in torment:

-What are you doing?!-he yelled at Van Thorne

-Get out!-Nick yelled back-I'm a professional!

After that he moved Yang's head a little, making her look at him with her beautiful, lilac eyes:

-Look at me-he said-it only hurts in the beginning, everything will be okay

As she was looking at him, Nick could clearly see as fear slowly leaves the expression on her face, instead replacing it with relief. She even smiled at Nick very politely. After 4 minutes, the incense burned out, the grey light was gone and the smoke disappeared. Zwei slowly walked out from underneath the bed.

Yang couldn't take her eyes off Nick. She just stared at him for a long time, without any actual reason, just because she wanted to. However, she immediately looked somewhere else, when she heard her dad's voice:

-Yang! Y…Your arm!

The blonde girl awkwardly let go of Nick's hand and looked at her other hand. Wait…what?

-Hocus Pocus! Abracadabra!-said Van Thorne when Yang's eyes went wide after realising that her right arm, which was cut off by Adam…is back. And looks fine, just like before

-What sorcery is this?!-yelled Taiyang, examining his daughter's arm

-We call this „Ancestration". Using this incense and special prayers, which only we make effective, we summon the spirits of our ancestors who leave the Paradise Lost and, with their infinite power, they heal severe wounds and sometimes even resurrect

-But…how?! What are you talking about?!-yelled Taiyang, still unsure what Nick just did

-Hexmen are sentenced to be half human, half Grimm-said Yang, while checking out her brand new arm-that means half of their soul is devoured and replaced with Grimm abilities and anonymity. But only those, who can control this fight for the last half of the soul and not let themselves lose this balance are called the Hexmen

-Clever girl-said Van Thorne, smiling

-That's from a legend-she replied and looked at her father-dad, I overheard what you were talking about with mr. Van Thorne

-Don't make me older Yang, please! I'm your age, dammit!-yelled Nick, laughing

-Sorry-she replied, glancing at him for a second with her lilac eyes. Van Thorne immediately calmed down-I want to go with him and find Ruby. I think I know where she is probably hiding…

-AND YOU DIDN'T SAY A WORD?!-yelled Taiyang. It was clear, he was pissed off

-Tai, don't-said Van Thorne quietly-Yang, you may know where your sister is. But I won't force you. The question is, do you want to go with me and one more person for this journey? It won't be safe, we may never come back. But I'll make sure that it'll be you who will have more chance of returning

-Darling, danger-said Yang. A grin appeared on her face-is my second name

-Well, so be it-said Van Thorne, happy that his crew is bigger-get ready. I'll be waiting for you near the house. I have my motorcycle parked there. I'm sure that we'll all get along in no time, since you probably know our third companion

-I do?

-Yeah, but let it be a surprise

-Yang…-started Taiyang

-You have nothing more to say, dad-Yang interrupted him-I already made a decision

At this moment Van Thorne walked out of Yang's house. Pyrrha was standing near his motorcycle with her spear and shield drawn:

-Thank Maidens, you're back!-she said, breathing a sigh of relief

-Pyrrha, what's wrong?

-Do you hear that?-she asked

Nick focused his hearing sense. He could clearly hear howling:

-Beowolves-he said, drawing his silver sword and a gun to the next hand-my aunt wasn't kidding. There are lots of them here. Fortunately, I can feel that only 3 are coming at our direction

-That doesn't make it any easier, you know?-said Pyrrha, a bit stressed

It was at this moment that the 3 monsters emerged from a distance. They started charging at Pyrrha and Nick. The Hexman started to fire from his gun at one Beowolf, while Pyrrha began to slice the other one with her spear. The third one suddenly sneaked up on Nick and was about to plunge his claws into his head…when suddenly both warriors heard a shotgun sound followed by an echo of a punch. Nick quickly turned around-Yang was standing a few steps behind him. She had brown yellow top, brown vest, a belt with a back skirt attached to it, black shorts, brown knee-high platform boots with orange socks sticking out of them with a bandana also attached to the left one. To top it all off, she had fingerless black gloves on her hands and long golden gauntlets, from which she was shooting at the Beowolf that attacked Nick. The Hexman also noticed something else but because of the fight he lost all his perverted thoughts. He then focused on fighting his Beowolf.

The fight didn't take long. Nick killed his Grimm with incredible speed, first chopping of its leg and later plunging his blade into its head. Pyrrha jumped on her aggressor's back and turned her spear into a Garand-like rifle, which she was firing at the beast's back, causing the Grimm's blood to spill everywhere, barely missing Nick's motorcycle. Yang looked like fighting was fun for her, just like for Nick. She was tricking her enemy, making fun of him (and puns, of course). „Damn, she's hot" thought Nick (another pun, shit). But then Van Thorne saw, that a lock of Yang's hair falls down to the ground with her noticing it. She immediately changed her expression from funny smile to a pure rage. Her eyes went red again and she jumped at the Beowolf. She then punched it so hard, both Nick and Pyrrha heard the cracking of the Grimm's spine. The monster just yelped and collapsed. After that, Yang's eyes became normal again. She turned around at the same time as Pyrrha:

-Am I dreaming?-said Yang, smiling. She started to walk towards the other girl-Pyrrha! It really is you!

-Yang!-Pyrrha was also mega surprised. They ran up to each other and hugged tightly. Pyrrha's expression on her face was clear-Yang was squeezing the life out of her.

Van Thorne was just standing a few steps away from them with his weapons hidden. He seemed happy. But after a little later, he walked up to both of the girls and laughed nicely:

-I'm pleased to see both of you smiling

And so they did. They smiled at Nick and moved away to his motorcycle. Yang was clearly impressed:

-My bumblebee looks like a maggot compared to this one! Just check out those tires!-she was talking, totally blown away

-Yeah, it looks pretty cool-Nick interfered and pulled out something from his coat. A weird device, that looked like a remote-unfortunately, we need to change it a little as it fits only 2 people

The Hexman pressed the button on his remote and suddenly his motorcycle started to shape-shift. Its two tires became four, the steering wheel became round, everything changed…

After about half a minute, a different vehicle was right before Nick and the girls. A shiny, big machine:

-Is it a hot rod?-asked Pyrrha, a bit sad that the chopper changed

-I call it „The roaring king". It looks like a hot rod, but is much better functionable. Don't worry, it's as good as the motorcycle mode, it only has more seats. We can always switch to it if one of you wants to go for a short ride. But for transport, this is the best option

Yang was impressed about how fast the small motorcycle turned. She was looking at it, grinning:

-What do you think, Yang?-asked Nick

-This…is seriously…AWESOME!-she yelled back in response

-Well then…ready to go?-asked Nick and turned around. Taiyang Xiao Long was standing near the door to his house with Zwei and was waving them goodbye.


	6. The birth of a new team

Nick jumped into the hot rod and started checking the engine. Yang sat next to him and Pyrrha took her seat in the back:

-The best way would be to go to Signal Academy. From there we'll take a ship to Haven-said the blonde girl. Nick noticed that she was shaking her butt a little while she was making herself comfortable on the seat next to him

-So…Ruby is in Mistral?-said Nick

-It's most possible. Before she left I heard as she plots something with uncle Qrow about Haven and tracking down those guys who tore Beacon apart

-Did you see anyone besides Qrow leaving with her?-asked Pyrrha

-Yeah. Ren, Nora and Jaune-replied Yang

-Then we better make it fast. I'm sure, Pyrrha, that you must be dying to meet your boyfriend again…

-Ooooh la la-said Yang and gave Nikos a funny look with a wide grin-so you really were flirting…

At that moment Nick's Scroll started to vibrate. „What? Who can this possibly be?" he thought and pulled out the device from his coat. „An unknown number. I'll take it anyway" he thought, picked up the phone and put it to his ear:

-Hello?

-Sir! Oh thank Maidens it's you!-a familliar voice yelled in response. Van Thorne could clearly hear that somewhere in a distance there are gunshots and screams

-Jeff? Why do you call me?-asked Nick worried

-Sir! It's an emergency! We really need your help! The White Fang attacked the camp!

-What?!-yelled Van Thorne. Yang and Pyrrha looked at him scared-Where is Ironwood, Goodwitch, Oobleck and Port?

-Sir, they've disappeared during one of the fights. I have no idea where they are. Sir, please come here as fast as you can! It's a matter of life and death-Jeff was stuttering from fear. Suddenly he started to scream-NO! PLEASE! NO! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

A sound of a chainsaw cut could be heard through the Scroll and then a different voice said through it:

-Come here, I dare you, human scum-said the new voice and hung up the call. Nick's eyes went wide

-Auntie-he just said

-What's wrong?-asked Yang

-We're heading back to Vale

-What?! Why?!

-The camp is under attack! It's The White Fang!

-How convenient-said Yang, bumping her fists together with an evil grin on her face-we're gonna rip some faunus buttcheeks off

-Yang, that's gross-said Pyrrha

-No time for talking! We're flying back!-yelled Van Thorne still stressed and scared. He pressed one of the buttons on his music player. A rock tune started to play. In the meantime, from the two sides of the vehicle plane-like wings emerged. The tires hid inside the machine and through a panel under the steering wheel Nick set the coordinates and switched on the autopilot-Girls, I've set the autopilot on but fasten your seatbelts, it's going to get bumpy

The new hot rod-like jet raised up to the sky and started to fly to the east. The relaxing rock song was playing. Nick was still a bit stressed and Pyrrha was looking at him worried. Yang, on the other hand, enjoyed the song and was even doing a bit of dancing. She was also loudly singing the lyrics:

-„Right Intooooooooo the danger zone"-Nick overheard the blonde girl singing. He was fighting with his thoughts: Is his aunt okay? Who was that guy who killed Jeff? Where are Ironwood, Oobleck and Port? However, he decided to find out about it when he gets there. He became more relaxed and even started to dance a little with Yang as they were gliding across the sea. The harbor was still a bit non-visible. But the sad thoughts kept on growing in his mind.

After about 15 minutes Nick's jet stopped right above the camp. It was just like Van Thorne imagined-a pure mess.

The Atlesian soldiers were running around, shooting everywhere. From the other side, different soldiers were coming. They had black silver armors, weird masks and black suits under these armors. Xiao Long jumped out of the vehicle right away:

-Yang, wait!-yelled Pyrrha, trying to stop her

But Yang was in total rage. She jumped at the other soldiers and was mercilessly shooting and punching them with her gauntlets. Nick and Pyrrha jumped out a little later and were trying to catch her. Van Thorne drew his steel sword and whenever a White Fang member was approaching him, Nick would cut him severely or even make him lose a limb. Pyrrha was shooting from her rifle, with the shield on her back. A little later the area was clear. The Atlesian soldiers, who were saved by the three warriors ran up to them immediately after that:

-Mr. Van Thorne! Thank Maidens, we were so lucky!-said one of them

-What's the situation?-asked Nick

-The White Fang hacked a couple of our knights, but they were neutralized. The only problem we have now are the hostages in the Beacon Tower…

-Do you know who is there?

-I know about a couple of our soldiers who already escaped and general Ironwood

-We've gotta get them out-said Pyrrha

-Negative-said one of the soldiers-they are guarded heavily. They still have a few of our Knights, two Paladins, fortunately just the prototype models and those two psychos watching over them

-What psychos?-asked Yang, intrigued

-One has a huge chainsaw and is ridiculously muscular. He just walks around and keeps on laughing. The other one has a coat simillar to yours, sir, red hair and a sword attached to his hip

-Adam…-said Yang, grinding her teeth angrily

-Oh no! Look!-yelled the soldier suddenly

The mentioned Atlesian Paladins were coming right at their direction:

-You get out!-yelled Van Thorne at the soldiers and then looked at his two companions-Yang, Pyrrha, destroy those two. I'm going for the hostages

-What?! No!-yelled Pyrrha. She didn't want Nick to leave at all cost-you'll die. Those two psychos are not something you can fight

-Pyrrha, calm down-said Yang and gave her a pat on the arm-at least we'll have fun with those guys. Oh, I almost forgot, Nick

-What is it?-asked Van Thorne impatiently

-If you run into Adam…break his arm from me, okay?

-Will do, firecracker-replied Nick and started to run towards the Beacon Tower. Yang and Pyrrha charged at the two Paladins controlled by The White Fang.

Van Thorne kicked the door open to the tower and rushed inside. The floor was filled with White Fang goons. They rushed at the Hexman with a little chance of surviving his deadly attacks. After just a minute all the faunus were dead and Nick was going into the elevator. When it started to move up, Van Thorne noticed a camera in the corner. Without hesitation he showed it his middle finger.

The controls of the camera were 2 floors above Nick, and so did the hostages. Two faunus were sitting and watching the view. One of them had his face entirely covered with a mask, the other one only in half. Those were the two psychos the Atlesian soldier mentioned:

-He's just like she described him-said Adam, smiling sneeringly to himself

-Should I…eliminate him, master?-said the Lieutenant swinging his chainsaw above his head

-No. Save your little toy for the next phase-replied Taurus, tightening the grip on his blade

In the meantime Nick's elevator suddenly stopped one floor before the one with hostages. He pulled out his two guns and started to shoot a crossfire at the faunus at that floor. They were dying like flies. Van Thorne had a sick pleasure of seeing them suffer before death. When the floor was filled with White Fang corpses and blood everywhere he just made the elevator go one more floor up.

Adam and the Lieutenant were getting on a ship that was supposed to get them out of Vale. Glynda Goodwitch, Ironwood, Port and Oobleck were tied to a pile of Dust crystals with an explosive trigger mechanism in a shape of a string. When Nick's elevator opened, he immediately saw the explosives:

-Nick!-yelled Glynda. She was crying from happiness-Over here! Watch out! Those maniacs tied us to explosives

-I see this much-replied Nick, slowly walked up to the tied hostages and kneeled. The string was attached to the ropes, that were hindering them:

-That's a very tricky one…

-Give up, human scum!-Van Thorne heard the Lieutenant as his and Adam's ship was leaving the landing point. At this moment he noticed the White Fang leader, smiling sneeringly at him. Nick kept in mind how his mask looked like. He was about to try to disarm the explosives when he suddenly heard quiet footsteps closely behind him. He quickly jumped on his legs, turned around and pointed his golden gun at the person.

It was a skinny girl with long, wavy black hair and amber eyes. Their shape immediately reminded Nick, that she's a faunus:

-Nick!-she yelled terrified and gasped in fear, raising her hands in the air-don't shoot! My name is Blake, I'm not one of them!

-Oh really? Then what the hell are you doing here?

-I've been watching you when you arrived at the camp and when you came back. Just…let me…

She tried to walk up closer to the hostages but Nick then repeated his gun, catching her attention again:

-And…if I pull the trigger?-he said pointing the gun again at her

-I'll die. It's all my fault. I want to help-she replied and gave Nick a very sad look. He already thought her face looks like permanently sad, but this time he thought like he feels the sadness

-Nick, put that gun down! This girl is really not from the White Fang! I guarantee-yelled Oobleck

-You really want to help?-asked Van Thorne, while listening to the doctor and putting the gun down

Blake just nodded in response.

-Then take that trigger over there and do not let it go no matter what. I'll get rid of the crystals

-Okay-she replied and took the trigger to her hands, just like Nick said

Van Thorne still wasn't sure about her, though. He snapped his fingers and put his hand on the ground. The purple symbols flashed on the ground. Blake was unable to move:

-What are you doing?!-she yelled

-Just making sure you're not trying to trick me-replied the Hexman and started to remove the Dust crystals. One by one, they were leaving the exploding mechanism. There were mostly red ones, which would hurt Nick, if he didn't wear his gloves. He was gladly tossing them away in the corner. Soon there were no more crystals. Van Thorne noticed that the symbols of his semblance already disappeared. „I forgot. Yrden runes only last one minute. Disarming the bomb took me at least two. So…maybe this girl actually is not evil?" thought Nick. Blake was still holding the bomb's disarmed trigger:

-Nick, are you done yet?-she asked

-Yeah, you can take the hand away

Blake released the bomb's trigger. It was clear she was nervous about it. When nothing happened, she sighed in relief and so did the hostages. Belladonna and Van Thorne were untying them, when they suddenly heared a loud roar down below:

-What is this?-said Ironwood

-Doesn't sound right-said Glynda-probably a bigger Grimm

-No ordinary one-said Van Thorne, peeking through the window-it's the Centipedra

-A what?!

-Giant worm, looks like a regular centipede, but it's much bigger and it's a Grimm-said Nick

-Where did it come from?!-yelled Port

-It was Adam-said Blake very calmly-he brought this monster to put it in the city's place. It would make settling here impossible for humans

-Well…I think Adam didn't predict, that a professional is going to deal with his little puppy-said Nick and corrected his gloves

Then both Van Thorne and Belladonna heard loud screams from below:

-It's Yang-said Nick-we better hurry

-Yang is here?!-Blake was surprised

-Yes she is. Got a problem with that?

-No. Not at all-Blake then smiled at Nick for the first time-ready to go?

-Anytime-said Van Thorne and turned back at his aunt-Auntie Glynda, are you going to be okay?

-We'll be fine-said Oobleck instead of her-go, deal with the monster, Nicholas. Take mrs. Belladonna with you

-I will be useful, don't worry-said the faunus girl still smiling

-Good-said Nick and jumped out of the window. Blake jumped right after him.

Centipedra was so big, she wasn't entirely out of the ground. Barely half of her body was on the outside, in a huge hole in the concrete. The monster had spike-like limbs everywhere, no eyes, and venomous fangs on the front. Nick drew his swords and plunged them into the Grimm's back, hanging loosely on them. Blake took out a sword, which she divided into two. She also plunged them into the monster's back, inches beneath Nick:

-Ha! Copycat!-yelled Nick, laughing at the fact that Blake was also using two swords

-Yes, I'm a cat! Now shut up and climb this thing already!-she yelled back, not understanding entirely what he said

Then Nick heard another scream. This time it belonged to Pyrrha:

-Okay, we'll do it like this-said Nick-you climb up on its head and slice the fangs. It won't do much but it will distract him. Meanwhile I'll go underground and look for the monster's heart. It should be about 13 meters underground, it's funny because the Centipedra's heart is also its butt. Oh and no matter what don't let the monster hit the two screaming girls down there, got it?

-Yeah-replied Blake and started to climb up the monster, while Nick pulled out his swords from the monster's back and jumped down along its body.

Blake quickly reached the Grimm's head. From there, she got a clear view. The Centipedra was shooting bubbles of acid from its fangs at Yang and Pyrrha, who were desperately trying to hide behind a destroyed Paladin. At that moment, the monster's fangs focused on Belladonna. She started to hit them with her Gambol Shroud. After a minute of trying to slice the limbs off, the blonde and the red-haired girl looked out from their cover and saw the faunus brunette on Centipedra's head:

-Is that…-Pyrrha stuttered

-It looks like her-Yang interrupted her-we need to help her

Yang and Pyrrha jumped out of their covers and started to shoot at the monster. Yang's Ember Celica were firing explosive shells at the monster's body, while Pyrrha was covering the two other girls by shooting at the fangs of the Grimm from her rifle. The shots were making the Centipedra shake in pain, so Blake yelled:

-Yang, stop! It won't do any good! Nick is already going for its heart!

-What?!-Yang couldn't hear Belladonna

-I said don't shoot!

Meanwhile, Nick was glinding underground, avoiding the Centipedra's fangs that were trying to impale him to the wall. After 2 minutes of falling, he saw the monsters core. He dived right at it and plunged his blade into the heart. The Grimm let out a screech of pain, but Nick knew that doesn't kill this monster ultimately. He snapped his fingers and put his hand on Centipedra's heart. A fire beam came out of his hand and burned the heart into a crisp. The monster was about to fall down. Van Thorne rushed as fast as he could back up and when he was at the edge of the rift he pierced through the sky, gliding on his coat to the dying monster's front. Then he saw that the Grimm before collapsing shakes his head around rapidly. This caused Blake to wobble and suddenly she fell off. While she was in the air, Nick glided right under her and caught her in his arms. She looked terrified.

Nick slowly landed on his legs. But Blake didn't want to let him go. Instead, she was sticking to him tightly, shaking from fear. Nick however, somehow managed to put her on the ground. For a moment she was just standing, breathing heavily. After that she turned at Nick and looked him straight in the eyes. Suddenly, she jumped right at Van Thorne, hugging him tightly:

-Thank you! Thank you!-she was just repeating through her tears of joy

Nick embraced her back and then noticed Yang and Pyrrha coming at their direction. Nikos walked up closer to him:

-You put yourself in such a danger, you know that?-she said

-I know, I'm sorry

-You got me worried here for so long!-she yelled angrily, but a little later she also sticked to him in a tight hug, crying-don't ever do that to me again!

Yang walked up as the last one:

-I don't see any spot for me here, so…Nailing time!-she yelled, grinning and jumped at the hugging three, pinning them all to the ground. Somehow Blake and Pyrrha held onto Nick's arms but Yang awkwardly landed on him, squeezing him in a tight hug

-HELP! I CAN'T BREATHE! AH, YANG, STOP TICKLING ME!-he was screaming

Suddenly they all heard a loud group of laughters. They turned to their left. Glynda, Ironwood, Port and Oobleck were standing nearby, totally fine, smiling:

-I'm so glad to see you all safe-said Nick's aunt

After this, Ironwood called Nick to summarise the damage caused by the terrorists. 20 soldiers were injured, 10 died, yet the White Fang didn't destroy anything in the camp:

-They didn't come here to destroy you-said Nick, while examining the hangar, where the frozen Wyvern was-they wanted to kill everyone and get a hold of the Atlesian robotics. But…what did they need the Centipedra for?

-I have no idea, Nicholas-said Ironwood, while he was typing something on his Scroll-all I know is that the destruction of those knights and paladins will cost us at least 1 million Liens

-For Schnee it won't be any problem, right?-said Nick, smiling-tell me, is that old duffer running for councillor again?

-I don't understand your disdain for that family, seriously-said Ironwood, raising his eyebrow

-I don't hate the entire family, you know-replied Van Thorne-I just don't like Mr. Schnee. You know why? Because his father was a councillor of Atlas. Remember those times? When all this technology had this „Snow Tax" or whatever he called it. It was just being a little leech. That's what he was doing

-You believe that the Snow Tax actually made Atlas fall into crisis?

-Of course! It was just a fraud and total bullshit! The Liens from this tax were not going to the poor kids in the orphanage or to the armless veterans of the Great War. They were going on Schnee's private account in Vacuo! And he will repeat that, I'm telling you, you will soon have a tax for oxygen!

-You're speculating…

-Maybe a little bit, but at least I'm not sweeping this case under the carpet. This has to end, James. The reign of Schnee must fall!

-Even if it was anyway possible, you have no idea how much support he gets from his daughters...

-Daughters?-Nick was intrigued-he actually has someone else besides Winter?

-Well, I might have exaggerated this one a bit. It's mostly Winter, who does all these politics. His younger daughter, Weiss…well, she's „apolitical" to say the least. For now

-I like her already-Nick laughed

-Anyway, I think we've gone a bit off topic here-said Ironwood-have you done a questioning for Blake yet?

-I thought Yang was supposed to do this…

-Well…you see, Nick, Yang and Blake are…not in good relations right now…

-What do you mean?

-According to what Qrow did through his spying, Blake was a member of the White Fang, Adam Taurus is her ex-boyfriend. When that monster cut off Yang's arm, Blake just ran away. She promised to get revenge on Adam, but Yang still thinks she abandoned her. Those are tough times for Huntsmen and Huntresses…

-Yeah, but what is it like with them now?

-I think Yang already forgave her, but Blake is unsure about that…

-Please don't tell me they are lesbians…-Nick gasped. It would be hurtful for him if it was true

-No, no, no! Of course not!

-Hope you're right…

-But…why are you even asking that?

-Uhhhhhhh…no, I'm not telling you. Gotta go now, I need to question Blake

Nick corrected the coat on his back and walked out of the hangar, leaving Ironwood alone…until a soldier was passing by him:

-Did I say something wrong?-said the general to the soldier out of the blue. The Atlesian soldier just shrugged.

Meanwhile, Nick was going to the headquarters of the military, where everyone had their tent and sleeping bag. But he didn't get there. Blake already found him. She emerged from the shadow near his tent. She was wearing what she usually did: purple-black leggins, thick heel boots, a black laced vest and the weird white rest of the clothing. Nick swore, that she looks like a maid at the first glance…if she didn't have that black bow on her head. She walked up to Nick, smiling:

-Nick, I want to thank you once again-she said-I can't possibly say, how grateful I am

-No problem-Van Thorne replied-but you know how many questions I may have

-I understand. But why don't we discuss this somewhere more…private?-said Blake, smiling even wider

-Like where?

-Maybe…in my tent

-Uhhhhhhhhhh…Blake?-said Nick, grunting. He felt very awkward

-Yes?

-Nothing…I mean…you're beautiful and all, but…we should know each other better before this…

-Before what?-Blake seemed confused

-You know…-Nick rolled her eyes on her from top to bottom. Belladonna suddenly realised what he meant and started to laugh

-You're such a perv, you know that?-she said, patting him in the arm-I wanted to invite you for a little chat, that's all

-Well…-Nick was blushing, embarrassed-I think I should have been the one to say that…

-Oh no-laughed Blake-I don't even want to imagine, what I'd find under your bed…perv

-Hey, stop it-Nick was pretending to be offended. Blake was still laughing

-Come on already before we wake up the entire camp

Blake's tent was very close to Nick's. Between them there were two other ones, where Pyrrha and Yang were sleeping.

When Van Thorne got inside the faunus girl's tent, he wasn't impressed. There was just everything that was in a regular one. A sleeping bag, a lamp, a small cupboard and a little window. Fortunately, it was big enough to fit both Nick and Blake inside. The only things that were different was a book on Blake's sleeping bag, a plate with some food on it, a thermos and two cups. Nick took the book to his hands:

-„Ninjas of love 2"-he read the title-they seriously made a sequel?

-Mhm-muttered back Blake in response, while she was pouring something from the thermos into the cups. Nick's perverted thoughts at that moment came back, because Blake was bending over to pour the drink into the cups and Van Thorne couldn't help but stare at the faunus girl's butt:

-Nick, are you…enjoying the cover of the book?-she said in a tone, like she just busted Van Thorne, but she still moved a little, making the Hexman stare even more

-Yeah, yeah...sure I do-he said

At that moment Blake turned around and passed one of the cups to Nick. He quickly shaked off his perverted thoughts and took the cup. He took a sip. „It's just tea" he thought „Maybe I'll stop actually drinking coffee for the breakfast. That tastes much better":

-So…-he said to Blake-How do you know my name?

-I told you-she replied-I was watching you

-But…how? I would definitely sense you

-Shadow cloning semblance. Able to distort even your Hexman sensors

-For now-said Van Thorne, remembering the moment on the hill, when he felt weakened

-Now let me ask you something-said Blake-how did you manage to get Pyrrha and Yang to go with you?

-The power of convincing, my dear-replied Van Thorne, but Blake immediately saw that he's kidding-alright, you got me. Well…it was kind of automatic. They were in need of help, so I gave it to them

-You call dragging out of hell and restoring a sliced off arm „help"?-Blake seemed shocked-you literally saved their lives, mine too…

-I tell you: it was automatic. I'm not a hero that does this „damsel in distress" thing, Blake. That's just what I do. And don't think it's because I feel any connection to the human race

-And why is that?

-Because…you see, Blake…The Brotherhood has a lot of answers for concerning questions. But one of them remains impossible: Where did the Grimm come from? There are lots of theories about it, but Brotherhood has its own. We believe, that the Grimm serve as a punishment for human sins

-You're totally wrong. The Grimm kill everyone, even the good people

-I don't believe in the existence of good people. I've experienced a lot throughout all this time. You're a faunus, you should know what I'm talking about

-I'm trying. But there are people that don't want to hurt you out there

-Like who?

-Take Pyrrha or Yang for example. You say you only helped them and not because you felt anything. But…I believe, that there is good in you. Even Hexmen sometimes follow their hearts…

Nick bit his lips. „What is this girl even talking about? I barely know Pyrrha and Yang" he thought. At this time Blake got closer to him and looked him deep in the eyes. Van Thorne felt as this amber pierces his soul:

-You're not evil, Nick. Don't ever believe that. Can you…promise me that?

-I can't promise anything, Blake

-Of course you can

-I don't want to disappoint you

-Don't do it for me. Do it for yourself

-I don't care about myse…

-Promise me-she interrupted him and gave him a very sad look. The amber eyes were looking at him with hope

-Fine, I promise-said Nick

Blake smiled and loosened her mood a bit. For the next 2 hours they were talking about almost everything that's possible, laughing and having really fun time. After that, Belladonna turned around to take the plate with food. She immediately took something from it and put it in her mouth:

-You like sushi?-she said, passing him the plate. Her voice was a bit muffled because of the food. Nick saw, that there is what she was talking about. Rice, fish and extras. So simple, yet so delicious

-Yeah, sure-he replied and took one of the pieces from the table and ate it. Blake put the plate away and turned back at Nick. She then put her hand on her belly:

-Oh no, I'm getting chubby-she laughed

-Nah, you're far from that-Nick replied, also laughing-you're actually…a bit skinny

-Jerk-said Blake, smiling

-Did I say that being skinny makes you ugly?-Nick laughed again

-No-the girl replied, smiling even wider-but I'd like to know if I am

-Anyone who thinks that should have a lobotomy-replied Nick smoothly-you're…ummmm…you're…

-Go ahead-said Blake and snickered quietly

-You're like really beautiful. In a different category. You're not just a pretty face and more curves than a race track. You're actually also very smart. I don't know how Adam could be so stupid and not even care about you, back then when you were together. If I were him, I'd rather spend time with you than waste my time and risk my life on achieving impossible dreams

Nick thought that Blake would blush and give a comment on that compliment. Instead, her face became dead serious. She looked at Nick at first angrily, and later a bit sad:

-I think it's about time you left…-she said

-Blake?-Nick was unsure what did he say wrong

-Please…we all need to get some sleep…

-Oh-said Van Thorne, still confused and sad that he might have just ruined his first impression-okay. Goodnight then

Nick was about to leave Blake's tent, when he heard her behind him:

-Nick, wait!

-Yes?

Belladonna walked up closer to him and smooched him in the cheek:

-Whoa!-Nick blushed, just like Blake-what was that for?

-Pyrrha told me that it makes you sleep well…I wanted to see if my lips work like hers

-I'm sure I'll sleep well after…that-said Nick and embraced Blake lightly before walking out of her tent. „Maybe I actually didn't ruin the first impression?" he thought to himself, while he was getting closer to his tent. Pyrrha looked from the entrance to hers and smiled:

-Hey, Nick!

-Yeah?

-Sleep well-replied the girl and hid back in her tent. Nick started to feel very weird. He started to question his theory about humanity being monsters. „Maybe not all of them are evil? What purpose could these girls possibly have in betraying me? I can clearly see that they like me and they're completely not two-faced bitches. What did this freaking father of mine taught me? Maybe he was wrong? Maybe the Hexmen are not that ideal, as everyone thought we are? But still, I'm a weirdo and I can't let these girls sacrifice themselves for me. It's my job. The world doesn't need heroes. It needs professionals. I am the second one, and I'll stick with that. A professional, professional, professional…But what about auntie Glynda? She cares about me and feels responsible as much as I feel for Pyrrha. Hell, even Oobleck, Port and Ironwood care about me. How many times do I have to tell them, that I can handle myself? Well…I should think about it but in the morning. Right now, I really need to sleep" he thought. He then got closer to his tent. He unzipped the entrance and walked inside. After that, he immediately took off his coat and boots.

But then he noticed something weird…like, really weird…

On the floor of his tent were…scattered clothes. He triggered the Hexman sight to see in the darkness, what it was. He looked really close and almost burst out laughing. „Black shorts and a yellow top. I wonder who could that be…" he thought and jumped to the button and switched on the lights.

Something or someone started to crawl out of Van Thorne's sleeping bag. A little later the unexpected guest could be clearly viewed by the Hexman. He could clearly see a storm of blonde hair:

-Hey there, handsome-said Yang, smiling at him seductively. Nick noticed that she has nothing on. She just barely covers herself with the sleeping bag. His eyes almost „melted" from this sight.

-Yang? What are you…

-Quiet, hon-she interrupted him. Her voice was very calm and seductive-we wouldn't like others to catch us, right? Now sit over here?

-Why?-Nick was a bit nervous and confused

-I have something I want to show you-replied the blonde girl and fluttered her eyelashes at him. Nick was slowly getting more and more nervous, yet somehow he manager to sit on the edge of his sleeping bag, a little too close to Yang's legs. She then grabbed him by the hand and was slowly moving it towards her chest. Nick tried his best to not look to his left, but he couldn't. He quickly looked at his hand:

-What are you doing?-he asked

-Just relax-Yang replied and pressed his hand on her chest. Nick's hands suddenly felt the warmth of the girl's skin, her deep breath and also made him hear her quiet and delicate gasps. Nick was in one of the biggest shocks he ever experienced. A very beautiful girl was rubbing his hand against her boobs. On the other hand, though…

„Why am I doing this? I can clearly feel that she forces herself to do this. I don't want to do it like that" he thought and moved his hand quickly away from Yang's chest

-What's wrong?-she asked with a very sweet voice

-I…I'm very sorry Yang, but I can't do this-he replied

-Why?

-Uhhhhhhhh…

-You're a virgin? It's not a problem, I am a virgin too

-It's not that. I mean, you guessed right, but it's not the reason why I don't want this…

-Then what is it?

-Tell me honestly, Yang: why did you want to do this in the first place?

-Well…-the blonde girl seemed to be drowning in thoughts. Nick kept on looking in her eyes during that, even though he had also a clear view at her chest, because she didn't keep the sleeping bag's fragment on it. After a while she said:

-You've done so much for me…I wanted to repay you, somehow…that's the only thing I could think of, really…-after these words, Yang seemed sad

-You don't owe me anything, beautiful. I was just doing what I should have done

Yang looked deeper with her lilac eyes at Nick. Her sad face was slowly turning back into a smile. This time it was more friendly, than seductive. Her eyes also changed a look from lustful to a more polite one. Nick slowly got closer to her and hugged her:

-You're such a sweetheart, I can't possibly thank you enough-she said and later whispered into his ear-but don't think I stopped here. I will get you next time

-We'll see about that-whispered her back Nick and let her go

-I guess…you won't let me stay then?-she said, sad again

-I didn't say that-replied Nick. He wanted Yang to stay, but at least keep some distance

-Yay

-But please, put some clothes on

Yang got up from Nick's sleeping bag. Van Thorne covered her with his coat while she was dressing back up. After that he put the coat back where it was, jumped in the sleeping bag and closed his eyes. Xiao Long gently slipped into the bag with Nick, completely not minding him pushing a little against her back, as she laid in front of him. But before she closed her eyes, she took his head in her hands and smooched him in the cheek. Nick felt that. When she made herself comfortable again, Van Thorne slowly put his hand against her waist and embraced her. They both immediately drifted off into sleep…

Yang woke up first. It was somewhere around 08:00. The sun was already shining. She looked around herself-Nick was still embracing her, she could feel his breath on her hair. She slowly took his hands off her waist and hips and gently left the sleeping bag. She corrected her hair and sneaked out of the tent. She was walking towards her tent to sleep a little longer, when she suddenly heard a familliar voice behind her:

-So that's how you're using your reborn arm…

Yang stopped and turned around. She was a bit troubled:

-Blake?

-Yang…what you did was…really unreasonable

-Don't you even lecture me here, bitch!-the blonde girl yelled at the cat brunette. Her eyes turned red-Nick didn't let me please him this time…but he did let me in his bed. He showed me much more positive attention than you throughout all these years!

-What are you talking about?-Blake seemed confused. She didn't know what Yang meant

-You left me back there! Do you have any idea, what I've been through after they rescued me there? How much I've suffered? Of course you don't, you're a faunus. I wonder if you even know what friendship really means…

-Yang, stop-said Blake apathetically

-No, you stop stalking us all! You're done for me, you understand it?

-Nick wanted you to tell this?

-No! He was actually just trying to be nice! And the fact that he was the one who restored my arm…it just blew my mind. He also dragged Pyrrha out of hell itself, can you even imagine this? Don't expect any kind words from me, our friendship is almost dead, thanks to you

At that moment Yang walked away to her tent, clenching her fists in anger. Blake just stood there for a second…and then she started to cry. She was trying to wash her tears off, but there were just too many of them. She sat down on the ground, laying her back on Nick's tent and continued to cry.

Nick heard all the argument. He actually woke up shortly after Yang when he heard her yelling outside of his tent. He was already fully dressed up. He opened the entrance for his tent and walked out of it. Blake was just at his left:

-Blake? What are you doing here?

-Oh, Nick-she replied, sniffling-I was just…

-I heard everything-he interrupted her and sat down next to her. He slowly put his arm around her back. She sticked to him, embracing him, crying into his shoulder

-I'm so sorry…-she said

-For what?

-I thought you used Yang…you know…in the bed…I didn't want to make her this angry…to remind me of all this horror

-She probably only woke up on the wrong side of the bed-said Nick, caressing her on the head gently-She should be alright when we'll go on the road today. The music and the fresh air makes her feel better

-Wait…on the road? Where are you going?

-We're trying to catch Ruby. Yang believes she's headed to Haven academy in Mistral

-Take me with you, please

-Of course. I was just about to say that

For a minute they were just hugging each other, with Blake slowly stopping to cry. After that she said in a quiet tone:

-So…do you think it is my fault?

-The fault is in both of you, Blake-replied Nick-you could stay with Yang, when she was evacuated. White Fang are only half rabbits, they won't escape forever. Yang, on the other hand, shouldn't be so furious about it because you're here with her now, and you didn't betray her

-Well…I suppose this is actually good for her

-What do you mean?

-That's how her semblance works. The more she's pissed off and the more hits she takes, the more powerful she is. So…

-Well, she shouldn't be loading her semblance on you, then

After that chat Nick let go of Blake and walked away to see his aunt, Ironwood and the 2 teachers who awaited them near Van Thorne's hot rod:

-The crew is ready, Nicholas?-asked Oobleck

-Almost. Blake agreed to come with us

-Alright. I've installed the coordinates to your landing zone in Mistral. However, the staff of Haven insisted that they take you from here-said Goodwitch

-Why?-Nick was surprised

-Apparently there are riots in whole Mistral. The criminals took over most of the city's districts, the last defenders are in Haven. If the situation gets any worse, I'll have to get an order to interfere in there with Atlas military-said Ironwood

-I don't think it will be necessary-said Port-Haven is heavily guarded with their awesome Huntsmen and Huntresses, they'll keep those bandits busy

-Nevertheless, I think you should be careful out there-said Ironwood-you don't know who you might run into

At that moment Nick noticed Pyrrha, Yang and Blake coming at his direction. They were fully prepared:

-Ready?-Van Thorne asked

-Yeah-replied Blake

-Why is she coming with us in the first place?-asked Yang, making an angry look on her face

-Yang, calm down. Try to give her a second chance-said Pyrrha

-Listen to her, Yang. She knows what she's saying. You have the right to be pissed off at Blake but geez…turn that down-said Nick

-I'm only doing this, because you say so-said Yang-I hope I can bear her long enough

-By the way, are we going? What are we waiting for?-said Blake

-We're waiting for the airship-said Nick-the hot rod will stay here, for now

-And why is that?

-There are some riots in Mistral. Bandits are gaining control. We need a safe transport to Haven in the first place, so they will send us an airship

-Look! It's coming-said Pyrrha and pointed at the sky

On the horizon a big atlesian airship was gliding at their direction. Yang, Blake, Pyrrha and Nick awaited the ship, thrilled, nervous and curious about what will await them in Mistral. Nick was excited to finally be able to meet Ruby, Pyrrha was dying to see her beloved Jaune again, Yang was glad to finally meet her younger sister again and Blake…well, she wanted to track down the White Fang, with which she connected those riots. And that's how team NYPB was formed.

(done, 6th chapter is done. Finally. I'm having some serious technical problems so the chapters may not be updated regularly. I'll do what I can to fix it. As you can see, a digital sketch of Van Thorne is my profile picture. Finally, I was really pumped to finally get it from my friend. Now I'm pumped even more because he is finishing a poster for the series this weekend! I also want to announce, that I'll try to contact Rooster Teeth myself. But if that won't work, I'm starting a Twitter account and we'll do this differently. But I won't be able to convince them in any way…without you, my friends. Your support will never be forgotten, but forever appreciated. So…hope you're having an awesome day. And stay tuned for the next chapters. Author out.)


	7. Welcome to Haven

The ship landed, with the new-formed team awaiting them. Nick was quite nervous, and so did Pyrrha and Blake. Yang, on the other hand, felt very thrilled. A new adventure awaited her. First after all that's happened back in Beacon. She was smiling, while Nick had a totally stressed face. Suddenly, he felt something. Yang was trying to slip her hand into his. Nick slightly squeezed it but tried to not let her know that he does that. But they both immediately let each other go, when the door to the ship opened. 2 figures emerged, going down the stairs leading to the deck of the ship. A tall female with long purple hair and dark blue eyes in the front and slightly shorter male with shoulder-length black hair, also with blue eyes a little behind her. Ironwood seemed shocked. Yang, Blake and Pyrrha saluted. Goodwitch, Oobleck and Port started to whisper to each other:

-Professor Tromberg!-yelled Ironwood, seeing the woman and quickly walked up to her-we're very pleased by your presence, but…don't you think it's a bit risky to go out like that to such a dangerous place like here?

-Ekhm…-grunted the man behind the woman

-I'm sorry, Mr. Mikaelsen, didn't see you at first. You're also very welcome here-said Ironwood

Professor Tromberg walked up a bit closer to Nick, Blake, Pyrrha and Yang, completely ignoring the general. She was looking at Van Thorne with no emotion:

-So…you're that Hexman James told us about?-she said with a very mature voice

-Yes, ma'am-replied Nick and took off his hat-and…who are you?

-How dare you…-the male was about to yell at Van Thorne, but the woman raised her hand, immediately silencing him

-No one granted you permission to speak, Jonas-she said apathetically

Nick felt as something presses against his back. It was Yang, cowering behind him. She was accompanied by Pyrrha and Blake. Nick then cleared his throat as if he wanted to remind the newcomers he's still there:

-Oh, I almost forgot-said the female and reached her hand out to Van Thorne-Helga Tromberg, headmistress of Haven academy of Mistral. That guy behind me is Jonas Mikaelsen, my assistant. And you're…

-Nicholas Van Thorne-said Nick, shaking the principal's hand-grandmaster of The Brotherhood. The 3 girls behind me are Yang Xiao Long, Pyrrha Nikos and Blake Belladonna of Beacon academy of Vale. As a whole, we form team NYPB

-Well then…nice to meet you all. Shall we go then?

-What's the rush?-asked Ironwood

-There are some people who are willing to meet these four in Haven as fast as possible. As much as we'd love to stay, we really need to get back. This problem with riots is growing and here you seem to be having a simillar one. Mr. Van Thorne, please proceed with Mr. Mikaelsen to the main deck. The trip will be long, it might take us whole day, so make yourselves comfortable and later I'll join you

-We will. Thank you, professor-said Van Thorne and climbed the stairs with his teammates. Tromberg's grumpy assistant awaited them at the top.

-Follow me-he said, looking at team NYPB with aristocratic type of pride, like at someone worse. Nick followed the assistant of the headmistress, while she walked up closer to Glynda Goodwitch and started to talk with her about something. The new team disappeared in the deck of the ship.

Mikaelsen brought all the warriors into a small corridor:

-These are your cabins. Unfortunately, we have only two of them spare. The one to your left has 3 beds, the one to your right has only 1

-I'm taking one bed!-yelled Blake immediately after these words and jumped to the room to her right and slammed the door. Mikaelsen shuddered.

-Well…that probably means you're stuck with us-said Pyrrha to Nick, smiling politely. But then it started to look more and more seductive and finally she embraced him and whispered into his ear-I'm not complaining, you know…

„Oh, for fuck's sake! Can't these girls behave normally?! Why is everyone trying to seduce me?!" thought Nick, pissed off. Yet he didn't show any signs of his irritation. He just smiled back, awkwardly and walked into the room to his left. Pyrrha and Yang walked right after him.

The room was a bit obscure, but big enough to fit all 3 warriors inside. In fact, there was almost nothing to complain about. There was a small window that could be opened, a bathroom, lamps that weren't very flashy…and the entire room was overall cozy. But there was one major problem. Nick noticed that with horror:

-Ummmmm…mr. Assistant?-he said

-Yes?-Mikaelsen's voice could be heard from behind the slightly opened door

-There are two beds in this room, not three

The principal's assistant peeked from behind the door, confused. He just laughed a bit and said:

-Of course there are. Well, two in one, to be precise. Is there a problem with it?

But even before Nick could say anything, he felt as his mouth is being covered by someone:

-No, no, we're good-said Yang. She was holding her hand at Nick's mouth, preventing him from saying anything. She just grinned at Mikaelsen. The principal's assistant left and closed the door:

-Oh, fu fuchs sahe!-mumbled Nick, still with Yang's hand over his mouth

When the girl let go of his face, she then walked up to Pyrrha:

-So…who sleeps where? One of us will have to sleep with him-she said to her quietly, pointing her finger at Nick. She stil had a wide grin on her face

-I'm not sure, Yang-said Pyrrha, looking at Nick with a seductive smile-maybe we should let him go to that separate bed and we should go to that double?

-Are you nuts?!-Yang almost yelled at her-you'd miss such an opportunity? You don't get to sleep with a Hexman everyday in one bed!

-Actually…we already did sleep together. On the ferry to Patch Island, Nick was taking a nap and I…-Pyrrha then realised what she was saying and covered her mouth half-sentence

-Pyrrha…-said Yang, holding herself back from laughing

Nikos blushed, embarrased. Nick decided he can't listen to this and said:

-Compromise. We'll fuse all 3 beds and everyone will be happy. Except for me, because…no one cares, really-he said, sighing in defeat

Both Yang and Pyrrha looked at him, confused:

-It's rude to overhear people-said Yang ironically

-You can't fool these ears-said Van Thorne, pointing his finger at his ears

After that he walked up to the only bed that was separated and pulled it straight to the double bed, fusing them all together. After that, another problem occured:

-Which side do we sleep in?-said Nick

-Well…maybe Nick will sleep on the right, I will go in the middle and Pyrrha on the left side?-said Yang

-Oh no! I don't wanna sleep on the left! You would be snoring directly into my ear

-I'm not snoring!

-Compromise-said Nick, sighing again-I will go in the middle and you girls on the sides, no matter which one you choose

-Fine by me!-said Yang happily and gave a thumbs up

While all this madness was happening in Van Thorne's room, the ship was taking off. Professor Tromberg was still talking to Glynda Goodwitch:

-You can't hide this from the rest of the world. I'll make sure about that-she said, as she was walking back to the ship

Goodwitch was just standing near the staircase. She seemed sad. Ironwood, Oobleck and Port were trying to comfort her, while Helga was going back to the ship. Mikaelsen awaited her in the command center. He was certainly happy with her finally coming back:

-See, Jonas? Nothing to worry about…-she said

-Except for them-said Mikaelsen and pointed his finger at the direction leading to the team's rooms

-These 3 girls from Beacon don't seem to be a problem. Keep an eye out on that Hexman, though. I have a very bad feeling about him…

-You think he might cause us trouble?

-No. I rather think he already is in deep shit. Swarms of Grimm in Vale, The White Fang, The Fall Maiden Usurper, riots in Mistral…

-And Lahilla

-I don't think they're a threat anymore…

-But it is suspicious…I mean these riots…all those people, throwing fists at those who swore to protect them…you think this wasn't set up by someone?

-I don't think, I KNOW this was set up. The riot brats are no longer throwing fists at soldiers, but actual grenades! Someone arms them, and we need to find out who as fast as we can. We can add Lahilla to the list of suspects…but in my opinion, this is just another one of those schemes played by Schnee and the council of Atlas

-You can't just blame them for everything…

-Atlas are imperialists! They've always been. I wouldn't be shocked if this turned out like that. They already can feel free to march their entire military into Vale, I'm sure Mistral will be their next target. Or maybe they're playing on 2 fronts…

-Helga, please stop speculating so much…

-You're right, Jonas. I think I've been thinking too much recently-she laughed-call these kids here, we need a serious talk with them

Mikaelsen walked away from the command center to the corridor. When he reached it, he heard loud snoring coming from his left. He opened the door.

Nick was lying on the fused triple bed. His mouth was opened, eyes closed and arms spread. He was sleeping. Yang and Pyrrha were patting him in the arms:

-Wake up! Ugh!-yelled the blonde girl

-Sir, ladies-said Mikaelsen-professor Tromberg awaits you in the command center. I advise you see her right away…

-Oh, gimme a fuckin' break! I thought I'll finally get to lay down in peace and quiet!-yelled Van Thorne while he was getting up

-Sorry to hear that-said Jonas and left the room. A little later team NYPB followed him. Tromberg was sitting in her chair like a queen. She put her legs on her desk and seemed bored. Even though she looked mature, she still had a very young-looking hair, which she was playing with, when Mikaelsen arrived. She didn't seem to care even a bit. NYPB just took their seats in front of that desk:

-Glad you accepted my invitation-said the headmistress

-I wonder where I have heard that before-said Nick with a sarcasm

-So…you're a team, right?-asked Tromberg after an awkward silence

-Not officialy yet-said Van Thorne

-Mrs. Tromberg-Blake bumped into the conversation without permission-We appreciate your cooperation with taking us from that spot in Vale. But I think we have the right to know why are we being taken to Haven?

-Weren't you about to actually come and pay us a visit?-said Tromberg, spread her arms and laughed

Nick poked the faunus girl in the arm as if he wanted to say „knock it off". Yang then grew a bot suspicious:

-How do you know we wanted to go to Haven?

-Our intelligence works very hard lately. Since there was such a social…misunderstanding…we were trying to get as much info from outside as we could. We sent the best agent to get a view at situation in Vale…and that's how we bumped into you, Mr. Van Thorne…My order from that moment forward was clear: You need to be watched. And he did a great job. We received information, that you plan a journey to Mistral, so we decided to surprise you

-You've always been a nation of filthy spies-said Van Thorne angrily

-Says the man who was stalking criminals for the last 7 months…-suddenly a voice could be heard behind team NYPB. It definitely didn't belong to Mikaelsen. It was very harsh and sounded a bit like an evil whisper. Yang's eyes suddenly went wider than ever. Tromberg also seemed surprised. Nick turned at that moment around.

The guy, who said that, was standing next to Mikaelsen. He had a small bottle for liquor in his hands and was drinking from it. He had black, spiky hair, red eyes and a light beard, kind of like Taiyang. He was wearing a grey shirt, black pants and boots and had a torn short red cape hanging loose from his back. Nick suddenly realised something. Since he appeared in Vale, everytime he was looking at the sky or was focused on something he could hear a bird cawing. At that moment he started to remember who it was:

-UNCLE QROW!-yelled Yang and ran up to him, squeezing him in a tight hug. He didn't seem to enjoy it

-Dammit, Yang! Stop! You're gonna break my spine-he was barely saying

„He behaves just like me" thought Nick. Pyrrha and Blake stayed on their seats. Tromberg was still surprised:

-Did you really have to expose yourself this much?-she said-and how did you get here?

-I got my own methods-replied Qrow, while Yang was letting him go

-Nick! Come here!-said Yang, while she was dragging Van Thorne by the hand-unlce Qrow, I'd like you to meet someone…

-Oh really?-Qrow sounded sarcastic

-This is Nick, my…boyfriend!-Yang sounded extremely happy about what she said. Pyrrha and Blake's faces turned red in rage, their eyes became huge. Nick blushed embarrased. Qrow laughed loudly

-He's actually this patient? Pleased to meet you then-said Yang's uncle and shaked Van Thorne's hand. His grip was simillar to Yang's. Nick never thought introductions can hurt this much

-I'm happy to meet you too, sir-replied the Hexman. After that Yang stopped squeezing him by the hand and instead hugged him. This time it didn't feel painful. In fact, she was gentle. She then placed her head on his shoulder

-But wait…-Yang suddenly said-if you're here then…

-Don't worry, firecracker-Qrow interrupted her-your sister and friends are safe. They wait for us in the landing zone of Haven. I didn't tell them who is coming, though, so they'll have a nice surprise

-You heard that, Nick?-said Yang, looking deep into his eyes with a wide smile…

And then…Van Thorne felt as something presses against his lips. Yang…was actually kissing him. „What the fuck is even going on?!" he thought at first. But then the entire world around him became foggy, nothing mattered at this moment. Nothing…except Yang. Nick had to admit it to himself. „Maybe I really love her? But…we've known each other for a very short time. Is it possible? Does love at first sight even exist? I only experienced hate and disdain all my life. But I never really tried to be different than I already was. Maybe this is the sign to finally change something not only in the world but also inside? What am I even thinking about?! Why does it even matter? Nothing matters right now. I'm kissing Yang Xiao Long goddamit. But…Blake and Pyrrha still see this. Let's just hope that I won't wake up the next day with my buttcheeks ripped off. I'm willing to take that risk…" he thought and kissed Yang back. Her lips felt like they were made for that moment. Nick closed his eyes. Yang did the same thing. For a moment, they were both just standing there, with everyone except Mikaelsen watching them. After a while, Qrow broke that silence:

-Yang!

The „couple" awkwardly stopped kissing at that moment. Xiao Long then realised, that she had her hand on Nick's butt this whole time. She blushed, embarrased and looked at Blake and Pyrrha. They looked like they wanted to absolutely murder her. At that moment also Tromberg woke up from her shock:

-Well, ummmm…turns out that Mr. Branwen gave you all the information I wanted to say. You can go now

-We'll meet again…Nick-said Qrow, this time in a harsh tone

The team was going back to their rooms. All three girls entered the room. Blake walked in as the last one. She slammed the door loudly:

-What the fuck was that, Yang?!-she yelled

-Quiet, you'll wake up the crew-replied Yang sneeringly

-What were you thinking?!-Pyrrha was also angry at the blonde girl

-What is your problem?-said Yang calmly-I didn't cut off his balls or anything…

-But…Yang…you barely know him! Not to mention what you did was staged and Nick probably didn't even want that-said Pyrrha

-How do you know?!

-I just think you should talk to him about that and try to do something about this! What will the rest say?

-Why should I even care?! You're just jealous, because your boyfriends turned out to be psychos or fuckin' weaklings!

-By the way-said Blake suddenly. She was calm-where is Nick?

Near the door to his room, Van Thorne had a conversation with Qrow. He dragged him over there before he could enter the room. Nick seemed to be a bit upset while talking to him:

-I'm as shocked as you are-he said

-No shit! You keep saying that, but you know what? I still don't believe ya

-Just like I don't believe that you actually didn't see that fuckin' shed!

-Look, I think we're getting a bit too emotional here. It's not that big of a deal. Let me propose a compromise. I'm not going to tell Ruby or anyone at Haven how really are things between you and Yang. But you've gotta end this madness. You both need to stop lying

-Alright, I'll talk to her and we'll just start posing as normal friends then. I'm telling you, it already was awkward enough for me…

-I appreciate your decision. To be honest with you, if you want desperately a girl, then go for Ruby, please. I'm afraid that this Arc kid is flirting with her

-Yeah yeah, go fuck yourself, Qrow-said Nick in an ending way and walked away. He had no idea, however, that someone heard him…

-So…you were shocked too?-a familliar voice sounded next to him

The door to his right opened slightly and Blake walked out from behind. She had her pajamas on. It was the first time Nick ever saw her in that outfit

-You always have to creep up on me?-he said, still a bit mad after his conversation with Qrow

-I just…accidentally hear things. Something you should already be aware of-replied the faunus girl and took off her bow. Small cat ears appeared in the place of it

-Yeah…sure. By the way, what's up with that new outfit?

-You avoid talking about it-she said, ignoring his question-are you scared?

-Blake…

-I don't blame you. It's not your fault that Yang put you in such a spot. I know this. But…Pyrrha…I think she has a bit of a problem with understanding it. She fell asleep after her huge rant on Yang and after that she kicked me out of the room

-What's up with Pyrrha?

-Well…Yang actually believes that you're that close to actually be in such a relationship. And then she started to glorify you and she started calling Adam names…

-No shit. He actually deserves that…

-Maybe. But after that she started to make fun of Jaune and that…kind of triggered Pyrrha. You're lucky you haven't seen this. It was absolutely terrifying. I've never seen her so pissed off, she was usually very…calm. Like me, you know?

-Wow…that's…unusual…

-Listen-Blake gently grabbed Nick by the hand-I know you've never been in such a situation and try to stay out of it as much as possible, but…sometimes you just need to decide

-You think I've never been making choices? I was. But they've never been that hard to make. On one hand, I'm pissed off at Yang, my aunt and whole this situation and want to just get on the motorcycle and drive as far from everyone as possible. On the other hand I feel like I've already drowned on the bottom. LIke I will never reach the surface again, but somehow…I feel accomplished, as if I put the last piece of puzzle into my lifestyle. Damn, all this thinking makes me sick. I wish I've never came to Vale…

-Hey-Blake squeezed Van Thorne's hand a little tighter-you're more important than you can imagine. You've played a bigger role than any of us already. So far everything you did was something we all needed. You're special, Nick. And I can feel it

-Yeah, sure…-he said, releasing his hand from Blake's grip. Her words were already echoing in his head-Goodnight

-Hehe, goodnight-she giggled quietly and closed the door to her room. Nick then slowly opened the door to his room

Pyrrha was indeed sleeping. However, something was different. She dragged one of the beds from the double one and was sleeping on this one separate. She was covered with quilt and was quietly breathing with her eyes closed. Nick looked at her and saw that her mattress has a wet stain near her face. „She was crying" Van Thorne thought to himself. Then he heard another sound. It was coming from the bathroom. Water. Yang was taking a shower. „Nope. I'm going straight to bed" thought Nick, took off his coat, sweater, boots and pants and jumped straight into the bed. He covered himself with the quilt and was forcing himself to fall asleep. „Just don't let Yang see that I'm not asleep" he thought. After about 15 minutes when he had his eyes closed, he felt as someone pokes him in the arm gently:

-Nick? Nick? Nick, are you asleep?-said Yang. It was her

Van Thorne didn't react. Even further, he tried to pretend he was in deep sleep so he started snoring. „I'm so sorry, Pyrrha" he thought to himself. But then he felt as he is being pulled by the hair. That…just was too much:

-Ouch!-he almost yelled as he rapidly woke up-What?! What is it?!

Yang was kneeling next to him on the bed. She also had pajamas on. Her face was serious. Nick thought that maybe she will actually try to say something about what happened:

-Nick…I…I'm so sorry

Van Thorne didn't say anything. He was just looking at her with hope:

-I wanted to let you know, that…I wasn't posing back there to humiliate you. It's just because…my uncle is very suspicious towards everyone. I wanted him to be sure, that you're a stranger that can be trusted, so I pretended we're a couple. The thing alone wasn't very awkward, but that kiss later…I think I might've gone a bit too far in this. I think I actually forced it on you. I understand if you're angry right now. Uncle Qrow will now probably start talking about a family meeting or something like that. I'll understand if you wish to terminate this „relationship" right now…

Nick seriously drowned in thoughts. At that moment, something weird was overcoming his senses, his aura and entire behavior. Maybe it was just his human part. But this time it felt even more human. More feelings were overcoming him. More emotions were taking control. How could something like that be tamed? His mind then completely shut down and all the thoughts started to come from the heart. And it should be obvious, what his heart made him say (not against his will):

-Yang…-he said

-Yes, Nick?

-I…don't want to end our relationship…

-Are you forcing yourself or do you really want that?

-I…I want to-he said, stuttering very much. At that moment his throat started to make him feel as if he was choking-Yang…

-What is it?-Yang's seriousness was turning into a big excitement

-I…I love you-said Nick, very, VERY quietly. „Holy shit. Did I seriously just fuckin' say that?! Well…goodbye cruel world. I'll probably be dead any second now. She's going to laugh at my face and I probably will end up jumping earlier off this ship. But…fuck! I really do love her! If that will seriously ruin me, I don't know how will I keep on living. I couldn't possibly continue as a Hexman. I would be unable to forget about her. We've known each other for such a short time, I practically know nothing about her. But these lilac eyes, that golden hair, this cute voice…it all just makes me feel as if I've known her all my life. Well, now I know for sure-if I didn't humiliate myself then I want to be with her. At least try. But what about Qrow? He'll probably kill me. We'll see who will be faster, Branwen. Now nothing matters…again" he thought. After that, he slowly crawled up to her, placed his hand on her cheek and planted a kiss on her lips. At first he had a feeling as she wants to resist, but she only wrapped her arms around him, squeezing him gently. Nick was getting really into that kiss. Yang had her eyes closed this entire time. Van Thorne, on the other hand, was looking at a different direction for a second. Pyrrha was still sleeping. „I hope what Qrow said about Jaune is bullshit" he thought and turned his eyes back at (this time for real) his new and first girlfriend.

While they were making out in the bed, something happened. The desire, the fire that they both had inside their bodies, was just becoming more and more tempting. Eventually, they both disappeared under the quilt and literally seconds later Yang's pajamas and the rest of Nick's clothes landed at the edge of the bed. They were really burning with lust towards each other. Nick was wrapping his arms around Yang, while she was awkwardly trying to take his and her own virginity away while their lips were sealed in kisses. „I can't believe this! So far I only had nightmares, but…this is a dream come true. And a good one I've never experienced!" thought Van Thorne. Eventually, Yang succeeded, and they both were like one. It was hard for both of them to not moan while they were having this awkward and a little funny first time sex. Nick was doing his best not to wake Pyrrha up. When all the excitement wore off, Yang landed right next to her new boyfriend, exhausted. They were still both breathing heavily. They both looked at each other:

-I love you too…-said Yang, while she was trying to control her breath and then closed her eyes. Shortly after that Nick also fell asleep.

When they woke up, they heard a quiet stomping in front of their bed. It was Qrow who was shaking his head. Pyrrha wasn't in the room He seemed quite pissed off:

-Uh-oh…-said Nick. His eyes went wide

-We had a deal, Nicholas-said Yang's uncle

-Go fuck yourself, Qrow-replied Van Thorne-I really love her, and I know this for sure

For a second there, Branwen seemed like he was about to slaughter him. But suddenly he took out his bottle with liquor, drank a little from it and started laughing:

-Charming, Hexman. Really charming. Now get your asses out of the bed. We've entered Haven's air space. We'll be landing in about 15 minutes and Tromberg wants to talk to you before you abandon the ship. Also, don't forget who awaits you nearby. Try not to make me feel ashamed, if you can…

About half an hour later Nick and Yang were fully dressed up. They decided to not hold each other by the hand and generally be a little quiet about their relationship. Both Blake and Pyrrha, however, turned out to know about what happened and didn't say a word to Nick and Yang. Tromberg awaited them right by the doors. Mikaelsen was not with her:

-Alright, team. We're here. Your guests await. After introduction with them, when you're done hugging and everything, go to your rooms. Mrs. Xiao Long, Belladonna and Nikos will go with the guests. You, Mr. Van Thorne, will go to the other room. You will be escorted there with two our teams, who will be responsible for your safety. You're a very essential guest to us and we don't want anything bad to happen to you

-But…-Nick was about to say something

-Shhhh…it's okay-whispered Yang. At that moment the doors to the ship began to open slowly. Later they were on the ground, with a stairway emerging from it. The same one, which team NYPB climbed while going inside the ship. At that moment Yang just said:

-Well…Stairway to Haven. Kinda makes sense…Nick, you know what I'm saying…-she said poking him with her arm. As always, it was one of her really bad puns. But because of that everybody wanted to laugh. In that moment, however, Nick only smiled while Blake and Pyrrha were dead serious. „Are they still pissed off about what happened?" Nick thought while he and the three girls were going down the stairs. Tromberg followed them slowly. For a second they were alone on the landing zone in Haven.

It didn't look very different from the landing zone in Beacon. There was this huge round landing zone, which was one of the three available, and this long pavement leading straight into the huge complex of Haven Academy. It looked simillar to Beacon, however it had some halls that were decorated with round tops, instead of triangular. It was also much more colorful. On the sides of the pavements, instead of lawns, there were thousands of flowers. For Nick it was ridiculous. He actually hated flowers. And he also had a friend, who was allergic to their smell…

Nick shaked his head, getting rid of all his nostalgic thoughts and slowly walked a little to the side. Van Thorne was correcting gloves on his hands…

While suddenly everyone heard a loud squeal from a short distance:

-YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANG!-a high-pitched voice could be heard from the distance. At that moment Nick stopped correcting the gloves and slightly slided down his sunglasses.

4 people were coming in their direction. Two boys, two girls. One guy had a hoodie and jeans on, and a sword attached to his hip. The other one had long (even longer than Nick's) hair in the color black. At first Nick thought it's a girl, before he got a better view at him. He had white pants on and a green tailcoat. He had a pink streak in his hair. Next to him stood a girl with shoulder-length, ginger hair, a white shirt with a heart carved out near her neck on it, pink skirt and gloves with the same color. Something about her smile…was not right. There was also another girl, who already left her 3 friends and was already near Yang.

It was a very short, childish-looking girl in a black/red skirt. A red cape was waving on her back. She had even shorter hair then the ginger girl. It had some red streaks, which were barely visible. Her skin was so pale, Nick felt as if sunlight was hurting his eyes from it. That girl jumped straight at Yang and pinned her to the ground, squeezing her in a hug. Yang at that moment seemed shocked. That girl was probably making her feel as if she can't breathe. Xiao Long was letting out weird sounds as if she was choking, while the other 3 people started to walk in their direction.

-Ruby, stop. You're crushing my neck!-Yang said through the terrifying grip of her sister

-Oh, sorry-said the girl with the red cape and awkwardly stood up. Her voice was very high-pitched. „Hope I can get used to that" thought Nick. But then he noticed something about this girl. She had…silver eyes. „Am I dreaming? My tasks were never this easy. It can't possibly be Ruby Rose. Or maybe fate has a surprise for me? I'll just be myself and see how this turns out" thought Van Thorne to himself and turned his sight somewhere else. The blonde guy was walking slowly towards Pyrrha. His face was pure shock, nothing less. The others seemed to be in simillar state. Even Ruby shouted out her name, when this finally got to her. Nikos didn't mind that. She just walked to the blonde guy…and kissed him. He still seemed to be shocked. The rest was even more shocked. Nick was slowly backing off…when he suddenly felt as someone pokes him in the back:

-Fuck off-he immediately said quietly, while Ruby and the two other people were talking to Pyrrha

-I won't-Blake calmly responded-this is your chance to be a hero. Have you never wanted that?

-No. I don't give a shit whether you call me hero or not. I'm myself, and that's what I'm happy about

-You say those things, but deep down your human part cries for attention…

-And what do you fuckin' know, eh? I'm a mutant, my human part is barely alive

-You won't sell me this nonsense. I saw you and Yang in the bed…

-Ha! And who's the pervert now?

-Shhhhhh…I watched you two when I came to wake you and Pyrrha up. You seemed back then as if you were a Hexman who is closer to his human side than to the Grimm side

-It's not even about sides anymore. It's about credo. I have my freaking rules. I need to keep the balance

-Deep inside, you know you want these rules broken…

-Hey, fuck you-he said as he walked away from all the crowd, angry. He wanted to just stand far from everyone. When he finally did, he pulled out a pack of cigarettes from his coat. „Forgive me for not using you this long" he thought as he was lighting one of them in his mouth. He was smoking, pattering nervously. Suddenly someone patted him on the arm:

-Excuse me, are you Nicholas Van Thorne?-an unknown voice said behind him

-Oh, for fuck's sake!-he yelled angrily with cigarette in his mouth as he was rapidly turning around. His coat waved ominously a little in the air

This time 4 guys were near him. The one that was patting him took the hand away scared. He had red gloves on his hands, short jeans trousers, unbuttoned shirt exposing his pathetic (compared to Nick's) abs, blonde hair, simillar to that guy's who was kissed by Pyrrha…and a tail. „Ugh, another faunus. It's gonna be a terrible conversation". The other 3 were normal humans. One had red hair and a military jacket in the same color, the second was black, had green hair and white coat and the last one had blue hair, goggles on his forehead, red jacket (this time not unbuttoned), and a white shirt with a black tie underneath it. „A bunch of typical teenage guys. How convenient" thought Nick to himself while he was calming down. When he did, he just smiled awkwardly:

-Oh, sorry for that. Just a…pretty rough time lately, hehe-said Van Thorne while dripping ash from his cigarette-Yeah, that's me, so what?

The 4 guys seemed to feel a bit awkward for a second but ultimately they became suddenly chilled out and all walked up to Nick, smiling politely. The faunus guy then said to his 3 companions:

-Hey, but why are we so insolent? He probably doesn't even know us

He then walked up closer to Van Thorne and stretched out his hand:

-I'm Sun Wukong. It's an honour to meet you-he said. Van Thorne shaked his hand, still confused about what is even happening. He kept on smoking, while he was shaking hands with the other 3 guys:

-Scarlet David-said the guy with red hair

-Sage Ayana-said the guy with green hair

When Nick walked up to the last guy, he took the cigarette out of his mouth and exhaled a stream of smoke from his mouth to the opposite site. The smoke, however, was moved by the wind into the blue haired guy's face. He immediately started to cough:

-What the hell, dude?!-he yelled

-Sorry-Van Thorne was embarrased. He quickly smoked the rest of the cigarette, dropped it to the ground and put it out with his foot

-Neptune, that's rude-said Sun suddenly-you seem to forget who that guy is…

-I know who that is!-the blue haired guy seemed offended. He later stretched his hand out and smiled politely-I'm Neptune Vasilias. Sorry for my reaction. I'm just…not used to this kind of stuff

-Yeah sure. It was kind of my fault actually-said Van Thorne

The 5 people were done introducing. Even though Nick felt a bit offended by how they were dressed and how they looked like, they seemed like nice guys. They even knew about Hexman's achievements:

-Oh, or that time in Village 230 when you killed that ghost in the well!-said Sun Wukong. He seemed mostly excited about meeting Van Thorne

-It wasn't a ghost!-laughed Nick-it was just a Boarbatusk stuck at the bottom. It was squealing in pain but the well was distorting his voice. That created an illusion that there might be a ghost. Funny, I didn't know that someone made a protocol out of this…

-It was in Mistral's newspaper! You were on the front page! „The mysterious guy in a trench coat saves villagers from Welling Menace" it was the headline-said Sun

-But I brainwashed all the witnesses! Who was the author?

-It was one of those anonymous freelancers. He goes by the weird name „Chopinhauer"-said Scarlet

-Sounds grim…

-Speaking of bad puns-Neptune interrupted Nick-look, someone is coming right at us. And she's looking at you, Nick

Van Thorne raised his sight a little. He saw Ruby and Yang coming in his direction. The silver eyes were still concerning him. Yang stopped. She had her arm around her sister's back:

-That's the guy. Nick, this is Ruby, my younger sister. Ruby, that's Nick, my boyfriend-said the blonde girl and smiled

Sun, Scarlet, Sage and Neptune's eyes almost popped out of the eye sockets after hearing this. They all looked at Van Thorne, who felt a little awkward about the situation and was waiting for Ruby to make a first move. At that moment professor Tromberg was walking near her. Team SSSN immediately ran up to her, leaving Nick alone with the two sisters:

-So…-the squeaky voice of Ruby could be heard, while Nick was staring at Sun and his teammates for a moment as they started to discuss something with Tromberg:

-Yeah?-said Nick after a while when he focused his eyes on Ruby. He then took off his sunglasses

-Oooooh…-Ruby was impressed-interesting color. Painted?

-Ruby!-Yang poked her in the arm-that's a Hexman

-Cool…and what is a Hexman?

-She never told you?-Nick was surprised

-She didn't let me. She said I'm „too young for those kinds of stories"

-Pfffff…Hahahahahaha! Oh, I almost forgot you're younger! Sorry Yang, it's actually good you didn't say anything

-Oh, come on! Tell me something!

-Ruby, the stories about Hexmen are really not quite good you know? I mean they are like those magazines dad used to hide under my bed, remember?

-Eeeeeeeeeeewwww…gross. Besides, those were yours, you won't fool me!-laughed Ruby

-What I can tell you, though, is the fact that these eyes are not fake-said Nick and pointed his finger at his eyes

-Are those eyes the reason you restored my sister's hand, which I still don't know how could it possibly work?

-Well…

-Nick!-suddenly Van Thorne had someone calling him out. It was Pyrrha. She was waving at him. She didn't seem angry anymore like on the ship

-Sorry, catch you later-he said and walked away from Ruby and Yang. The younger girl seemed to be interested about him. „I'm scared to think what this will turn into" he thought. He then walked up closer to Pyrrha. The blonde guy, the brunette and the ginger girl were also there:

-So…you're Nick, right?-the brunette guy was the first one saying anything-I'm Lie Ren, and that little devil you see next to me is Nora Valkyrie

-Oooooooh…it's a real Hexman!-the ginger girl seemed overjoyed. She began to inspect Nick from every side, checking his muscles etc.-Can you demonstrate how you use your semblance? I heard that it's awesome

-Depends what do you want to see…-said Nick, while he was shaking Nora off, who was leaning against his arm-I can use Igni if you want it this badly…

-Show me!-Valkyrie almost yelled at him from joy

Nick walked away a little from everyone, pointed his hand in the distance, snapped his fingers and stretched his hand out. A fire beam left his hand and flew right in front of him. Pyrrha and Ren started to clap their hands. Nora ran up to him:

-That was awesome! What else can…Ah! Look!-she suddenly squealed

Nick looked at his hand. It was still burning. „Fuck! I forgot to take off the gloves!" he desperately thought while pulling it off his hand. When it finally got off, he dropped it to the ground and started to stomp on it quickly. It worked, the fire disappeared. Ren and Pyrrha seemed a little worried:

-Uuuuuuuh…Tadam!-said Nick and raised his hands, laughing awkwardly

Pyrrha, Nora and Ren also started to laugh. The blonde guy, on the other hand, facepalmed. He seemed uncomfortable with the situation. At that moment Van Thorne put the glove back on his hand. „It's okay" he thought to himself after a further diagnosis. He then walked up to the blonde guy, took off his other glove and stretched out his hand:

-You must be Jaune, right?-he said

-Yes-he quickly replied and shaked Van Thorne's hand

-Pyrrha told me a lot about you-said the Hexman

-I thought so…-said Arc. He didn't seem really interested in what was going on

For the next couple of minutes everyone was talking pretty much about everything. Later Yang and Ruby joined them, which made the conversation even more…alive. And even though Van Thorne was flooded with questions and flatters from Ruby and Nora he was concerned about something different. He didn't get a good first impression on Jaune. He seemed suspicious to him. „Why is he so calm? That's really odd. Pyrrha was overjoyed to finally see him again after she spent so much torment in Dante's domain. If I were him, I'd feel the same thing. Why he didn't say anything to her so far? Why did he barely even react when he saw his dead girlfriend alive again?! Is he that retarded? I have serious doubts about him. He may not be as Pyrrha described him. He may be only worse…". After those thoughts flew through his mind, he decided to abandon this concern for now. He focused on the girls surrounding him and flooding him with questions. Even Blake seemed like she had some questions. But still he didn't take his eyes off Nikos and Arc. He then saw something, that really worried him and pissed off a little bit. Pyrrha walked up to her boyfriend from behind and tried to grab him by the hand. The blonde guy quickly took his hand away from her. Nick was shocked about how calm Pyrrha was about this. „She probably thinks something else, anyway" he thought.

After a long time, team SSSN came back from their conversation with Tromberg:

-Nick, your room is ready. You wanna go now?

-Go. You should rest-said Blake to Van Thorne

-Alright, sure-said Nick to Sun and his friends and followed them inside the academy

A few minutes later Nick and team SSSN was in a narrow corridor, with doors to his left and right (again). Nick could hear Sun and Neptune whispering to each other about the fact, that Yang was his girlfriend when they were going there. About seconds later they stopped under one of the doors. Van Thorne heard quiet voices coming from inside:

-You're gonna live with a different team. We'll be next door-said Sage-call us if you wanna hang out or something

-Oh. Okay. Wait, where does Ruby live with the rest?

-Last door on the left-said Scarlet

At that moment Neptune walked up to the door and knocked a few times:

-Uuuuuuuuuugh!-said a female voice from inside

A weird looking girl opened the door. She had dark purple hoodie and swept to the right hair in the light green color. She was also wearing black shorts. Two ink lines were drawn under her eyes. She was chewing a gum:

-Reese, this is the guy we've talked about-said Sun

Nick felt as the weird girl grabs him by the hand and shakes it rapidly:

-Yo, what's up?-she said like she knew him for a long time. Van Thorne was confused as hell

-Uuuuuuh…nothing much. Guys, what the…-he tried to say but team SSSN was already gone and Reese dragged him into the room. No one was inside, but Nick could clearly hear sounds of shower coming from the bathroom nearby. Reese suddenly let go of his hand:

-So…here's our room. Unfortunately, we got other term, so the bed ain't ready yet…

At that moment the door to the bathroom opened and someone walked out of there. Nick instinctively looked back. He thought he might regret this, but didn't think about that because of the confusion.

It was a tall girl with a legitimate brown skin and platinum blonde hair. Her head was wet and she was only covered by towel. She seemed very surprised seeing Nick in the room:

-Chloris, why did you bring a stranger to our room? I thought I stated myself clear…-she said. Her voice sounded very strict

-But that's the guy! Ya know, the guy from Chopinhauer's articles

-Oh. Well then, sorry for my behavior. Nice to meet you, I'm Arslan Altan, leader of team ABRN. And you're…

-Nicholas Van Thorne, Hexman-replied Nick, nodding slowly-where are the other two members?

-Oh, Bolin is probably meditating as always. And Nadir…he probably sits in the library, reading all this ballistic stuff or whatever-said Reese. In the meantime, Arslan disappeared again in the bathroom. Minutes later she came back fully dressed this time but still with wet hair. She sat down on her bed and started to dry her hair with a hair dryer. It was starting to lift up higher and higher that it created an even weirder hairstyle than Reese had.

For the next 2 hours Nick was talking to the two girls. The main topics were the feelings, that Hexmen have when they kill the Grimm:

-How can you feel any empathy towards a freaking monster?!-yelled Nadir suddenly. He and Bolin Hori came to the room about an hour later when there was a discussion. Bolin was the only one sitting silently, from time to time asking questions. Shiko was constantly commenting, and Reese and Arslan were the main discussors

-It is simple-replied Nick-all Hexman are half Grimm. When they kill one, they feel like they slay their brother or sister. Sometimes…

-Well…do you feel sorry for the Grimm you kill?-asked Bolin

-No, I got rid of that feeling long time ago. I feel weak with it

-Fair enough-said Reese

A little later team ABRN made Nick an improvised bed for him to sleep in. It was basically a mattress, a blanket and a cushion. After that someone knocked at their door. Arslan opened it:

-Mrs. Tromberg!-she gasped surprised

-Arslan, can Nick come out for a second?-said the headmistress

-Yeah, sure-Altan replied and moved away so that Van Thorne could leave the room. Tromberg led him to the window, near Ruby's room. For a moment she was just staring at the shattered moon:

-Beautiful, isn't it?-she said

-It surely is

-You know that The Brotherhood was blamed when it was turned like that?

-We are always blamed for the bad things. People still don't know that there are witches among them. They're too blind to see

-Your faith in humanity is extremely low, isn't it?

-Even below. I don't believe in humanity. I only protect them because I'd have nothing else to do

-Really? Unfortunately for you, these days we are protected by Huntsmen and Huntresses. You, Hexmen, are forgotten

-Forgotten and extinct

-There is, however, one thing that we still use and it originated from you

-What is it?

-No one knows Grimm better than you. Your knowledge is that of legends

-What do you suggest, professor?

-If you could provide us some of your informations…

-No

-Oh, come on! You'd really help us out

-And if I don't want to?

-Look, if you will teach these kids something about fighting the Grimm, I promise we'll help you track down Lahilla

-Killing one or two members you'll track down won't be enough

-I assure you, you'll get what you want. Our spies have traces of „The masked fox"

-Bullshit!-Nick's eyes went wide-you're lying!

-You'll never know if you won't try-said Tromberg and smiled

-Even if I want to, there's that situation with all these riots outside of Haven…

-We will send a couple of squads on those types of missions. You will be able to join them. However, we cannot stand out from our educating schedule. I'll let you think about this, in the morning I await your final response. Now go to sleep, it's already past everyone's bedtime-said the headmistress and walked away from Nick. For a second he kept on staring at the moon…

When he suddenly heard loud voices coming from behind one of the doors to the rooms. Van Thorne didn't want and didn't like overhearing people when he didn't want to…but then he recognized the voices talking behind the doors:

-Jaune, what are you talking about?!-said a familiar female voice

-Pyrrha, you need to understand-a male voice responded-I already lost you once and it was because you didn't want me to die there with you! You know how much I've suffered through all that time? Ruby was trying to cheer me up and was failing miserably. But you know what? I'm glad it turned out like this. Because I don't feel anything anymore. This is my present state, Nikos. No feelings. Even love…even this is dead

-Jaune…-Pyrrha was hardly holding back tears. Nick could clearly feel that in her voice

-Stop, Pyrrha. We can still be team, like in old times. But all the other things…that thing near the tower…that's over

-Jaune, I…I'm so sorry…

-I'm not blaming you. No one is guillty here. It was my own decision. As a leader, as an Arc and as a grown-up man

-Jaune, if that's about Nick...

-You think that freak poses any threat to me?! It's just a sad retard, who thinks he's cool because he can shoot fire from his hands and because he wears an old-fashioned coat and barely says anything so he can smoke that disgusting crap. His life is probably the most miserable there ever was

-Stop, Jaune! You don't even know him!

„So that's who you really are, Jaune Arc. Poor Pyrrha…she fell in love with such a douchebag" Nick thought.

-Don't raise your voice at me, you slut!-a yell could be heard by Nick

-Ouch, Jaune, let me go…you're hurting me…

-I am the team leader! You don't give me orders!-another yell and suddenly…a sound of a slap. Nick shrugged on his position for a second. And right after that his blood started to boil like crazy. „I'll make your life miserable now, you fucking prick!" he thought angrily as he took his ear away from the door and was about to kick them open…

But suddenly he felt as his leg is being stunned and an unknown force puts it back on ground. Nick tried to fight the pressure, but that didn't do anything. Instead, he heard a hoarse, slow, dark and evil voice in his mind:

-Nooooooooooo…let me feed more on this…dramaaaaaaaaaa-it said, extending the words on purpose

-No! Fuck off! Leave me alone!-he yelled at the voice, using telepathy

-Hehehehehehehe…Nickyyyyyyyyy…you've always been, you are, and you'll always be alooooooooneeee…

-Motherfucker! Stay away from me! Don't make me use green goo again!

-Hahahahahahaha…your desperate resistance amuses me. However, your rage is impressiveeeeeee. You will not abandon me this time. You owe me thisssssssss, remember?

-Alright, just tell me what to do and stop harassing me…

-Killllllll that priiiiiiick, Jauneeeeeee…feeeeeed me his heeeeeeeeart

-I don't think I can…

-Niiiiiicky…cooooome to the daaaaaark…embrace the shaaaaadowsssss…he isssssss NOTHING!-the last word the voice yelled with less hoarseness and more aggression

At that moment Nick could function normally again. He couldn't hear the voice anymore. But he knew it still was in there…

So he quickly plunged his hand in his coat and took out a vial with green goo. Suddenly, he felt a pulse of pain in his head and his view turned a little red:

-NO! YOU WILL DO MY BIDDING!-yelled the voice in his mind with the same aggression

But Nick was faster. He quickly drank the goo and put the vial back in his coat. The voice screeched for a second and later…it was gone. Van Thorne's eyesight was normal and the pulsing pain was also gone. „I did it. Again. My sanity is back. I must…control myself. Must…keep the balance working" he thought, but he was driven away from what he was thinking when he suddenly heard Jaune yelling again:

-Go away! There's nothing to save!-he said

At that moment the Hexman heard loud steps towards the door. „It's him" he thought and jumped instinctively into the shadow (paradox), hiding in it in the process. The door to the room opened. But it wasn't Jaune, who walked out…

It was Pyrrha. She was in her typical armor with the red skirt. She slammed the door behind her, walked a little closer to the shadow where Nick was hiding. She sat on the floor, looking like someone who was defeated…

And started to cry. This made Nick also want to cry, but he was resisting it. He looked at Pyrrha at the same state as he met her-poor girl brought down to her knees, sobbing quietly in the darkness, without anyone to care about it or even hear it. Anyone…except Van Thorne. He slowly started to walk out of the shadow. He wanted to hug her at that moment, kiss her, tell her everything will be fine, but he knew he'd be lying. Instead, he decided to play cool. He sneaked up to her undetected and sat right next to her. She had her head covered between her knees and was driven away by the pain in her heart:

-Rough times, am I right?-he said

The red-haired girl slowly raised her head and focused her eyes on him. Nick saw that she was forcing herself to crack a smile, even though he felt she is happy to see him:

-I thought you might come…-she said-you must have heard everything…

-Trust me, I wish I did-Nick decided to pretend like he didn't hear anything

For a moment he thought he hears the evil voice in his mind again. It was whispering: „She deceives you". But Nick quickly shaked off his thoughts about that voice and the whispers were gone. He then felt as Pyrrha's head leans on his shoulder and as her hand squeezes his lightly:

-That feels better-said Nikos

-Uuuuuuuuuh…Pyrrha?-said Nick-didn't you just break up with your boyfriend like a minute ago?

That was the wrong move. Van Thorne felt as his shoulder gets wet from tears. „Fuuuuuuuuuck" he thought:

-I'm so sorry, Nick…I'm not a slut, believe me. It's just that…you make me feel safe…I feel like I can tell you everything. You're the best listener and the best friend…hug me, please…

Nick felt awkward but did what the girl told him to. When they both embraced each other she only started to cry more:

-Why did this happen, Nick? Why Jaune's heart became so cold?

-People are shit, Pyrrha. That's for sure. Some are so pathetic, that they freeze you with their weakness. People like that…they're just not worth your time and place in life. Now, don't cry. Jaune is not worth your tears. Fuck him. You're smart, beautiful, friendly…you'll find the one, I'm sure of that

Pyrrha then loosened her grip while embracing him and looked him straight in the eyes:

-Can you tell me now…why did you come for me to hell?

„I'm not sure what is the reason, and I don't fucking care. I think about you every second of every day, of every week, of every month, of every year" he thought and almost said that…but bit his tongue at the last moment. „What if that's not what she wants? She just broke up with her boyfriend, I can't jump in his place that quickly. Besides…there is still Yang. What about her? I should probably tell her what I really feel, she should understand. No…I'll wait and see. Right now, let's just play the smooth role" he thought. Instead of response he slowly moved his head towards her ear and whispered:

-Does it matter? I'm here for you now, and I will always be

„Shit, that's too much exposure. I already can smell the friendzone hitting me in the face like a wooden plank. Oooooooh, this is gonna be painful…"

Nope. That was not what happened. Instead Nick felt as Pyrrha…

„Wait! What the fuck?!"

She was kissing him. Directly in the lips. Nick had no time to continue his smooth moves, he was already face to face with the girl he loved since his childhood. At first he was feeling as the rest of his common sense drifts away. After that nothing mattered except Pyrrha. For a couple of minutes they were just kissing there, sitting on the cold floor of the corridor, closely to a room with the stupid ex-boyfriend Jaune and the poor, not informed Yang. After Pyrrha took her lips away from him, she blushed in embarrasment. But the smile on Van Thorne's face was wider than any equator ever. When Pyrrha realised that, she said the words Nick so far heard only when he dreamed about her. The real reason why he saved her from hell:

-I love you too, dumbass-said Nikos, giggling


	8. Blending in

-Morning, sleepyhead…rise and shine!-Nick heard Reese's voice. But he was already awake. He just didn't want to get up, not even look at all the world around him. He kept his eyes closed. It was all making him feel…sick.

-Uuuuuuuuuuugh…-he just grunted in response

-Someone woke up on the wrong side!-Reese giggled and put her finger in Nick's ear, trying to tickle him to get up

-Fuck off-he mumbled, slapping her in the hand with his eyes still in the pillow

-Ouch!-Reese groaned. She then got back on her legs and this time she kicked Van Thorne in the butt (he was sleeping on his side)-wake up, seriously. There's a lot to be done. Tromberg said we're gonna have new classes today but didn't want to tell us who will teach them, and she wants to talk with you about it

Nick got up on his feet immediately after that kick. He was fully dressed up:

-Wow. Do you ever change clothes?-Reese said

-Why does she want to see me?-said Nick, ignoring her question. He still sounded a little sleepy

-I dunno. But it's better not to disobey her, believe me

-Alright then, I'll go pay her a visit-the Hexman replied, left the room and slammed the door. „No one will tell me to be in a hurry when I'm not" his first thought. He indeed was taking his time while going to Tromberg's office. The reason was simple…

„I love you too, dumbass"

After these words Nick and Pyrrha started making out on the cold floor of the corridor, not caring about it. They were lying on the floor, very passionate about what they were doing. For a moment Nick even was about to insert his hand under Pyrrha's skirt but she just slapped him in the fingers. At that moment the magic was gone. They both stopped and returned to their previous positions. They were sitting next to each other, awkward silence could almost be heard on the corridor.

-Nick, you need to understand…-said Pyrrha when that silence started to make her uncomfortable

-I'm sorry-said Nick at the same time, interrupting her

-You first

-Nah, I interrupted you first, go on

-Well…look, I've just broke up with Jaune and thought that I won't be able to live with it. Suddenly you came and…I just couldn't hold my feelings inside anymore. I love you very much, Nick, believe me, but…what you were trying to do…-she then corrected her skirt a little-I'm not ready for this yet. Especially after what I saw on the ship…

-Hey, I get it. Don't worry

-I don't want you to leave me because I won't jump into your bed straight up like Yang did

-It's not the case…-When Nick heard her mentioning Yang he suddenly realised what he just did and covered his face in his hands-Oh no, what have I done…

-What's the matter?

-I cheated on Yang! With you! She's gonna kill me or worse, leave me forever!

-Yang is not like that. She will understand

-But no girl deserves to be treated like that! I'm even worse than Jaune right now!

-No you're not-said Pyrrha. She almost cried-Jaune decided he is above all of us and I know he won't find another girl. You're different. At one point, I could clearly see that you feel something for Yang. On the other hand, you have the same thing with me. You just have a big heart, Van Thorne. Heart for more than one person in your life

-But still, if she won't get it…

-She will. Be positive-after these words Pyrrha planted a kiss on his cheek-you go to sleep now. Goodnight

-Pyrrha, I'm so sorry…

-I said, don't worry about this. Now go, I'll be fine

-Are you sure? You have somewhere to sleep?

-I'll sleep in the bathroom. Now go

-Pyrrha, wait!

-What is it?

Nick then walked up closer to her and kissed her once again.

-I wanted to do that since I was at the University-he said and smiled

-You have such tender lips…do that again-she said and kissed him for the last time-now I really gotta go

-Yeah, me too-said Nick, turned around and walked straight up to the doors to his room. When he was near it, he looked for the last time at Pyrrha. „What am I doing? Why am I repeating the story of Garrett all over again?"

Garrett was a legendary Hexman, who used to serve as an authority for all The Brotherhood. The first name is the only thing his brothers ever knew about him. Nothing else was known-where did he come from? What was his last name? How old was he? That information never reached anyone. A little later after Garrett left Gwynbleidd for his „Crusade" against The Grimm, one of the Hexmen found his corpse in an Ursa's cave and his journal. Inside was everything about where he was throughout that time. From what this Hexman read, Garrett lived a life of a vagabond, drinking gallons of alcohol…and „banging chicks" as he called it. Every single romance he had in his life was described with every detail included. He was even describing how he used magic during sex (I'm not gonna say what that was). He didn't represent anything that Hexmen were about-he was always drunk during fights, he allowed lots of Grimm to escape, he was even mocking his own brothers. That journal disappointed The Grandmaster and he ordered the Hexman who found it to burn it. But even though he did what he was told to, he managed to read everything and spread the story by himself among his brothers. And so Nick also heard it.

„That's really disgusting" thought Nick before going opening the door to the room. When he layed down on the bed, he suddenly started to think about Yang. This made him drop a few tears. „I broke her heart. Why? Am I really a monster, no matter if I keep the balance or not? I really need to rethink our relationship. Hmmmmm…fuck it. I'll tell her about Pyrrha. But I'll be subtle, I don't want her to kill herself after that"

And with those thoughts he drifted off into sleep. But even though he was sleeping, the thoughts about what he did were haunting him. In fact, they did so much harm, that they managed to create a nightmare out of themselves. It was simple. Nick had a dream about the past he didn't take part in repeating itself. He saw Pyrrha die again, he watched helpless as Yang's arm is being cut off…and then he heard this terrifying cry. The cry that no one wishes to ever hear. And suddenly a flash of a red eye in the darkness…and then he woke up. After that he didn't fall asleep again. And that's the state Reese woke him up in.

And so now he was walking down the corridor, with his hands in the pockets, depressed about his current state. To add more salt, he bumped into someone on the corridor. That was no one else than:

-Blake!-he yelled when he hit the ground. The brunette girl stayed up, even though she was close to falling onto the floor too. She walked up to Nick

-I'm so sorry! Are you okay?-she asked when she was helping him get up

-Yeah, I'm good. Are you?

-Yeah, you could say that

For a moment there was an awkward silence between them, and later Blake decided to break it:

-You look like someone threw you up. What's wrong?

-You're joking, right? You surely overheard what happened yesterday

-The only thing I know about yesterday's evening is that this morning we found out that Pyrrha was sleeping in the bathtub

-So…she really did this…

-Did what?

-Blake, do you promise me you won't tell anyone, absolutely anyone?

-I promise

-Pyrrha…she…broke up with Jaune yesterday

-NO WAY!-Blake almost yelled-so that's why she was so calm…

-He hit her…

-Bullshit! She didn't have any traces of that

-I got rid of them

-Ooooh la la, mr. Smoothy is always there for a potential girlfriend?

-Shut up! I was nearby so I might as well helped her

-Something tells me you didn't only „help" her…

-I'm so done with you, faunus-said Nick, sighed and tried to walk away. But then he felt as he falls to the ground again on his face and as someone holds him by the waist. It was her:

-Don't leave me, please! I'm so sorry, I didn't wanna be insolent. Is there any chance you could forgive me?

-You…you don't actually mean that, do you? Get off me!-he yelled and shaked her off. He was about to walk away, when he suddenly heard her cry. He drowned in thoughts again.

„What's going on with her? She behaves so weird since the day we met. Did I trigger something while we were talking in her tent back in Vale? She's crying right now anyway. Shit…I really hate when girls cry. I mean when they're really sad. Tears of joy make me smile. Should I see if I can make a faunus happy? Tromberg can wait. Blake is my teammate after all. For now…"

With this he walked back to her and ducked close to her. She was lying on the floor, crying to it:

-Hey-he said as he poked her in the arm-get up

Blake raised her amber eyes at him. He could clearly see tears:

-I really feel like apologizing to you right now-he said-I didn't want to hurt you

-Are you serious?

-Yes. Now please don't cry. We're a team, we'll always be together in this

Blake then stopped crying, washed her tears off with her arm and blushed:

-That sounded very weird…

-I know…mainly because I've never been in a team before

Nick helped the faunus girl get up. They decided to walk together to the headmistress' office. During that, they were talking a lot about food and their past:

-All I'm saying is that tuna will always taste better with corn, apple and some mayonnaise to top it all off. I know it's a strange eating habit, but you really gotta try it out!-said Nick once they were in the classrooms wing

-You really make me so hungry, I feel as if some kind of monster is growling in my guts right now…-Blake responded-hey, can you do that?

-Do what?

-That thing you said…

-I'm a very bad cook, Blake. You might do it yourself, it's simple. I mean you can do sushi, so a simple salad shouldn't be a problem

-Ummmmm...that sushi…it's from market in Vale, 20 Liens for one box

-Are you serious? Damn, is any of you good at cooking?

-Yeah, I think Ren is. But there's no way you could be faster than Nora at eating all his pancakes-Blake then stopped and focused on slowly walking with Nick. Van Thorne could see a weird look in her eyes. It looked kinda…lewd. „Probably she has weird thoughts right now. My father once told me: Humans are horny, but faunus are pure sex. I gotta ask Blake though what is it. I might be wrong"

-Hey. What's on your mind?

-Why do you ask?

-I just thought…

-Well, Nick, I'm having some really dirty thoughts about you-the faunus girl said and giggled. „At least you were right about that, father" thought Van Thorne

-Oh, really? You imagine me spilling milk over my lap?

-No…these are much, much dirtier. And I'm the one getting milk…-said Blake in a very seductive tone. „Oooookay, I think that's enough for now. Oh, finally, Tromberg's office"

-Look, I gotta go. There's the office I needed to go to

-Of course, handsome. I'll see you later…

„Blake Belladonna. I'm already being seduced by a 3rd girl. Is there a curse on me? Sometimes history runs in circles. Am I the next fucking Garrett? If I am correct, the stories say he had 27 girls throughout his life. This is worse than a horny faunus. I've gotta be more tough, but…I wasn't educated in resisting female charm. It's always a spell stronger than a maiden's power. Fuck that, Blake walked away, I can finally focus on more productive things. Here I come, Tromberg"

Nick opened the door to headmistress' office. He slowly shut the door behind him…and saw something very awkward.

Tromberg was sitting in her chair, but she wasn't sitting…well, like Tromberg. Nick saw rather a mature-looking teenage girl, who tried to desperately pull her leather pants up:

-Nick! What a surprise-said professor, blushing embarassed. She finally won the struggle with her clothing and covered herself with her dress-please, have a seat

-I'm sorry for that, professor…-said Nick with a hidden sarcasm

-No problem. I was about to call someone for you again-she said, when Nick was taking a seat-So…Van Thorne…

-I'll do it

-Excuse me?

-I'll teach your kids about Grimm. But I have a couple of conditions…

-Go on

-First, I wanna be informed everytime there's progress in finding The Masked Fox. Second, I wanna be able to test your students in theory and in practice after I finish educating them. Third, I want Mistral to support rebuilding Beacon Academy in Vale, for my aunt and for my girlfriend

-You got it. Your first class starts at 1 o'clock p.m. so after the classes with Mikaelsen are finished you can go

-Be honest: You already knew I was going to say „yes", right?

-Of course. I knew your father, you're just like him

-Your attempt to insult me is wasted-said Van Thorne and walked out of Tromberg's office

Then he noticed somebody on the corridor. At first Van Thorne thought that maybe Blake waited for him but turns out it was someone slightly different.

It was Ruby. Her black/red skirt was waving a little while she was walking across the corridor. Her silver eyes were focused on a book she was reading:

-Hi, Ruby-Nick called her

-Oh, you. It's good to see ya. Can you help me a little bit with this?

The Hexman walked up to the girl and took the book gently from her hands. He rolled his eyes at the pages and giggled:

-Are they really still teaching this? Who even learns about Dust outside of military these days?

-Well…that's still a thing. They still make painkillers out of white Dust. Though I had a friend who was using it in combat and she would rather cause pain than remove it

-White Dust is very expensive as far as I remember. Was your friend some rich aristocrat or something?

-How did you know? Yes, she was. Weiss Schnee, heard of her?

-Younger daughter of Atlas' biggest corporate rat? Only from stories. Anyway what help do you need here?

Nick and Ruby were walking around the corridor. Rose had a problem with chemical reactions of Dust with certain liquids:

-So nitrogen fuel will blow up with red Dust?

-Yes. And which Dust won't react with any fuel?

-Uhhhhh…Purple?

-Green. Close enough, Ruby. I think you might pass this test-said Nick and patted the silver eyed girl in the head-good job

-Thanks...-she replied, but at that moment Van Thorne noticed that she tries to add something

-Hey, weren't you a student of Beacon? When did you move to Haven?

-I have a different educating programme. We just learn, take exams and get our only mark, apart from those who applied to Haven officially. Ummmmm…Nick?

-Yes?

-What does a Hexman really do?

-Works in shadows to serve the light. You see, Huntsmen and Huntresses kill monsters because they feel like it's their duty and they want to protect people. Hexmen are more specific. We protect people but only for a prize. Because we are also half Grimm, we need to fight ourselves too…

-You're half Grimm?!

-I know, I'm a monster. A freak. But I got used to it

-No you're not. From what I see you don't have anything Grimm in you. Well maybe except those eyes. But…what powers do you get from being like that?

-Our fights with ourselves are always repayed by wisdom, knowledge, physical or mental strength. We get access to powers people can only dream of. I used these powers to bring Yang and Pyrrha back

At that moment the school bell rang. Its annoying sound could be heard clearly by Nick and Ruby:

-Oh, next lesson. From what I heard, these are going to be new classes with a new teacher. I'm excited about that

-Yeah…I gotta do something too. Catch you later-replied Nick and was about to walk away when he suddenly felt as the silver eyed girl gently and quickly hugs him

-Sorry. I always say goodbye to the nicest friends like this-she said and giggled

Nick didn't say anything. He just smiled and walked away. „She's very childish, yet I can see that she's clever. She must have been through a lot. I can see that in her eyes. Why did she call me a friend though? Alright, there is my first lesson"

Van Thorne slowly opened the doors to the classroom. He heard as everyone shudders and corrects their chairs. He slowly walked inside, feeling very confused:

-Come on in. No need to be shy-a familliar voice said from the classroom. Of course, it was Tromberg

When Nick got into the classroom, the teacher only took seconds to finally get right next to him:

-Class, this is Nick. Some of you may already know him, but he is a walking encyclopedia about Grimm. He'll teach you everything about these monsters-she then turned at Van Thorne-I'll be sitting by the window at this lesson, next ones you'll do by yourself

Helga walked back to her window, where she sat down. For a couple of minutes Nick was rolling his eyes around the classroom. He saw team SSSN and team ABRN, grinning excited. „Where's Ruby?" Nick thought while grunting:

-So…welcome, people and faunus, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Nicholas Van Thorne, and I'll teach you a subject called „The Grimmistics". Anyone knows what I'm talking about?

Silence.

-I can't hear anything. Come on, speak up!

-No-mumbled most of the class

-Yes-yelled at the same time team SSSN and ABRN

-That's what I thought-said Van Thorne and curved his lips. At that moment doors to the classroom opened loudly:

-Sorry we're late!-Said the squeaky voice of Ruby. She was with Yang, Blake, Jaune, Ren, Nora and Pyrrha. They were all breathing heavily because of running. When they all saw Nick, their eyes went wide. The Hexman just smiled

-I'm glad you joined us. Please have a seat-he said. In reality he was shocked that they actually also were here-anyway, today's topic will be very short. So, we have all the time we need to talk about a couple of rules here at my classes.

The students were looking at Van Thorne with no emotion whatsoever. But Nick didn't really care. He already had a plan to talk about Grimm the way kids these days wanted to hear. Nevertheless, he took the chalk and started writing on the blackboard the 1st rule:

-As you can see here, I'm not going to be very strict about classes. You can come maximum 10 minutes after the bell rings, if you don't come after that then sorry, but I'll have to mark that you're late. Okay, rule number 2-he paused and wrote something more on the blackboard-I absolutely hate when students are too stressed. Please, relax. The only stress you'll ever get will be on your finals with me. However, I will punish those who offend me in any way while I'm teaching. And the last rule…-Nick wrote last words on the chalkboard-always do your homework. I will provide any help you need but I can't stand holes in knowledge. Understand?

-Yes-the class mumbled

-Great! Now that we have that off the list for today, let us begin The Grimmistics…-he paused for a second-What is the first thing you have in mind when someone mentions Grimm?

-Monsters!-yelled team SSSN

-Demons!-yelled team ABRN

-Monsters yes, Demons no-said Van Thorne-Demons are a completely different race of beings. I will teach you some demonology after the semester if your headmistress allows me to do so. Now, the perfect word to describe creatures of Grimm is…well, a disease or plague if you want to. It can take any form, it's even smaller than pathogens. Bacterias, Viruses, Fungus, Parasites, Prions, Nanoviruses and even Bio Weapons can contain what we called „Syndrome Code". This is a gene chain hidden in a pathogen which while injected into human body can transform him or her into a Grimm. Anyone around here was sick recently?

-Well…I caught cold the other day-said Neptune without raising his hand

-There is 50% chance you had flu. Flu is a disease carried by viruses and they are definitely the best vessels for Syndrome Code. Fortunately, as Huntsmen and Huntresses, you've learned how to use your Aura, which sort of works as a defense system for your organism from Syndrome Code. If you got Grimm disease, the Code would devour the sources of your aura, your brains and your hearts. This would turn you all into monsters you fight so bravely.

The class was clearly scared. Sun, Scarlet and Sage moved away from Neptune's bench.

-But, you might be asking yourself…maybe the Grimm actually feel something? No, they don't. The only thing Grimm know during their life are orders in their ears…

-Orders?-asked Ruby. She was very intrigued

-Yes. They hear a whisper in their head, giving them orders. Usually there is only one: To kill without mercy. They blindly follow the voice because they know that its owner has full control over them and they are her puppet. Worse, they are unable to defy her.

-Who is „she"?-Yang was even more intrigued

-I feel real shame confessing this…students…the queen of Grimm, Salem…was one of us

A gasp of shock could be heard throughout all the classroom. Some students were whispering to each other, some straight up screamed from shock:

-WHAT?!-the loudest scream belonged to Tromberg

-Allow me to explain-Nick calmed everyone down-you see, a long time ago…

Unfortunately, the bell rang. Nick cursed it in his mind with all possible words. Most of the class got up from their benches and ran out of the classroom, scared of their new professor. Only teams SSSN, ABRN, JNPR, Yang, Ruby and Blake stayed in the classroom. Tromberg also slowly walked out of the room. Nick sat on the lecturer's chair and covered his head with his hands:

-I should have never mentioned this-he said-now The Brotherhood will be cursed for all eternity

He heard as someone sits on the bench he was sitting by. He looked up-it was Ruby. She was there with him while the rest were talking by the doors:

-Nick, I have no idea who you are, but whatever is the problem you need to tell us. This queen of Grimm you mentioned might be still a danger. That's what friends are for, right? To be there for you while others turn their heads, right?

-Not right, Ruby. This problem might be too big even for you and your silver eyes-said Nick through his teeth, stood up from the chair and walked out of the classroom, slamming the door loudly behind him. Everyone inside shrugged and looked at Rose

-What did I do?-she replied to the piercing eyes of her friends. She could not have understood this situation by any means…

Nick was running blindly through the labyrinth of Haven's corridors. Unable to think normally, he was avoiding students like fire. Eventually he got into a conclusion, that it's impossible and climbed one of the pillars on the courtyard. He kept on climbing and eventually got into the rooftop of Haven. There, he finally sat down and took a cigarette out of his coat. He lightened it in his mouth, allowing its taste to drift him away from everything that happened. He had no idea that underneath him was Tromberg's office, where she had an unsuspected guest:

-HE DID WHAT?!-yelled Qrow so loudly Tromberg shrugged

-Branwen, I suggest you calm down-said Mikaelsen, who was standing next to headmistress' desk

-You SHUT your mouth, fuckboy!-yelled Qrow again. This time it was obvious he drank too much-not only is this Huntsman wannabe fucking my niece, but he also scares students with unrealistic bullshit!

-Qrow, you're wrong-calmly responded Tromberg

-Oh yeah?! Prove it! I've never seen this cunt, Sally or Shalom or whatever they call this queen of Grimm or whatever-Qrow started to wobble from anger. Tromberg felt like she really had to put an end to this discussion

-Why do you come here drunk? What do you want?-asked Tromberg

-I wanted you to keep an eye on that long-haired freak but I think that this situation is getting out of hand…

-What do you propose, huh?-Mikaelsen sounded irritated

-Easy, Jonas-Helga felt his anger

-I want you to kick the motherfucker out of Haven…make him do what Hexmen do the best. Wander Remnant without purpose like a vagabond he really is! What am I going to tell Tai? „Hey, bro, remember when you sent your daughter on a journey with this freak? Well now he fucks her, what are your thoughts?"

-I have a plan…-Tromberg linked her hands together and smiled to herself

While this discussion was happening, Nick finished smoking his cigarette. He didn't focus his Hexman hearing sense on voices underneath him. After his cigarette was finished he jumped off the rooftop and landed on a statue in the center of the courtyard. He slided down from it and landed safely on the ground. But didn't walk much as he heard a voice right in front of him:

-Hey, Nick-it was Reese-we're setting up a little card game in the library. Wanna join us?

-We?-Nick was confused

-Our team against team SSSN. Nadir doesn't play because he insisted on reading his ballistic books. I thought you might as well play with us. So…you up?

-Ummmmm…-Even though Van Thorne was embarrassed after the situation in the classroom, he still felt too good when someone invited him for something. The temptation was too strong-Yeah, I'm up. Lead the way.

Reese took Nick by the hand and ran with him to the library. Van Thorne was too focused on trying to release his hand out of her grip, so he didn't remember where exactly is the room where the girl was taking him. When they finally got in, the rest was already waiting by the table with card decks in their hands. Some of them were already on the table:

-Guys, new challenger!-yelled Reese happilly

-What are we playing?

-Kingdoms

-Oh, right. Remind me how was it played?

-You basically have your army and have to conquer others

-That's easy-said Nick and sat down next to Arslan. Reese took a seat on the other side

After half an hour all the others were sad, as they lost. Only Nick was sitting with his cards in hands, smiling:

-I told you it was easy-he said while he was collecting the cards back to the deck. All the embarrassment was already gone. After he put the deck away he took out his cards from the coat-I have a better idea for you. Let's play poker, but the hold 'em version

-Are you mad?!-yelled Nadir from a distance while taking his eyes off the book

-It's nothing hurtful. We can set up other bets. It don't have to be Liens

-Well…what do you propose?-asked Reese

-If I win, Reese and Arslan will give me a kiss on the cheeks-said Nick, smiling

-If I win, you're gonna do all my homework-said Reese

-If I win, you'll sleep in the bathtub for the next week-said Arslan

-If any of us wins, Nick moves to our room-said Sun for all his team

-Deal!-said Nick but then looked with a corner of his eye at Bolin. He looked like he got the message

-If I win, Nick stays in our room-said Bolin

-Deal!-said at the same time Sun, Scarlet, Sage and Neptune

-Alright-said Nick-I will be the dealer

All players got their 2 cards. Nick put the rest of the deck next to him:

-So, what do you bet? Any raise?

-Nope-said Sun-Check

Every other person said the same thing. Nick did the Flop, putting 3 cards on the board:

-We got…five spades, seven clubs and a Jack. Anyone wants to raise or do we jump straight into Turn?

-Nope-said Neptune, looking at his cards and at the ones on the board

-Alright-said Nick and put the next card on the board, the Turn-oh…next five spades. So I guess I already can put River?

-Yes-said Bolin

-Alright. Here it goes-and Nick put the last card on board-next Jack! What a coincidence! Now we show our cards

Everyone exposed their cards and Nick compared them to the ones on the board. After a short analysis he giggled:

-Looks like I won-he said

-How?-Reese was looking from behind his shoulder

-You all had high cards, that's for sure. Well…Neptune had two hearts which couldn't possibly give him a win in this round. You all were close. But my two cards were five spades and seven clubs. That gives me a three of a kind and two pairs. I can count out the Jacks because they were already on board. That gives me a full house. You had no chance

-I have no idea what you just said…but you actually won-said Sage

At that moment Nick felt as the two girls sitting on his sides kiss his cheeks. Even though this was pretty quick, the door to the library opened and someone walked in.

It was Yang. Unfortunately Arslan and Reese still had their lips glued to Nick's cheeks when she came in:

-Nick, where the hell are…you?-she said. Her eyes went very wide

Arslan and Reese let go of Nick so that he could get up from his chair and come closer to the blonde girl. Team ABRN and SSSN started then a discussion by the table about video games they used to play. Yang looked like she was about to get very angry. Nick, on the other hand, didn't regret anything so he just walked up to her and said:

-Hey, baby. You were looking for me?-he said, wrapping his arms around her waist. To his relief, she didn't resist at all

-What was that?

-Oh. This little thingy here? We played poker. Real fun game-he then noticed she is suspicious-hey, what's the matter? It was just a little joke Arslan and Reese did, nothing else. You are the most beautiful in the world still, you know that?-He then kissed her and she wrapped his arms around him. For some time she was staring at Reese and Arslan arguing about something and then focused her eyes on Nick. She smiled and giggled:

-You know? It doesn't matter how many girls kiss you…as long as your heart is mine, I'm happy-she said

-You're the one that sets it on fire-replied Nick and kissed her again. Nadir was staring at them from behind his book, raising his eyebrow in confusion. After kissing and hugging for almost half an hour Nick returned to the table. Reese and Arslan were looking at him, wide grin almost tearing their faces apart:

-What?-said Nick noticing all the eyes on him

-Never thought you're such a romantic-said Sun-how long are you together?

-2 days-replied Nick embarassed

-And yet you look like you were in love since you were in a sandpit-said Bolin. Everyone was surprisingly calm when Nick was saying that

-What does it have to do with anything? Let's play another round, this time we play hold 'em with treats

But at that moment doors to the library opened again. Nick looked there-it was Mikaelsen. He quickly walked up to Van Thorne, while he was desperately hiding cards. „For the love of Dust, please don't tell me you saw we were playing hold 'em" he thought, before Tromberg's assistant was already near him:

-We have a problem, Nick. Tromberg wishes to see you right away

-Professor Mikaelsen?-said Neptune-does that have something to do with what Nick said during our lesson?

-Mind your business, Vasilias-replied Mikaelsen with a strict tone while Nick and he were leaving the room

Right after they left the library, Jonas' face changed. From a non-emotional apathy it was slowly turning into kind of an evil expression. He was also walking very fast. Van Thorne barely put up with him. But eventually he rebalanced his breath and was next to him:

-What is it? Why are we going so fast?

-You'll find out when we get there-said Tromberg's assistant as he was entering the elevator leading to the floor on which Tromberg's office was. They were both quiet in the elevator, its stressing music could be heard very well while they were going up. Nick was stomping nervously, while Mikaelsen was tapping something on his Scroll in a hurry. When the elevator finally stopped and they both walked out of it, they saw Qrow sitting by the doors to Tromberg's office who was getting wasted with his liquor:

-Good luck-he only said with his harsh voice

Mikaelsen and Nick walked into the office, quietly shutting the door behind them. Van Thorne sat in front of the headmistress as always. She was sitting by her desk with her legs on it:

-Leave us, Jonas-she said and Mikaelsen left the room immediately-Nicholas, Nicholas…what am I supposed to do with you?

-Hey! This thing with Grimm queen can be explained, you just have to let me tell you it…

-I'm not pissed off about this. I'm just looking for another mission for you-She said and at this moment Nick noticed she had her computer on this entire time

-Oh? But why?

-I can see that you have problems with lecturing. Our students are not the best you could get, I give you that. I thought that maybe you'd like to have a more entertaining job at our little school…-she paused for a second, looking at the screen-Oh! I got one! It's a one time job but should be enough before you begin to give our kids next Grimmistics lessons

-What is it?-Nick's attention was caught by Tromberg

-As you know there are riots outside of Haven. People scream words so disgusting we have shivers down our spines. Council ran away to Atlas, leaving the task of bringing peace back on our shoulders. We can't do it all by ourselves, we barely struggle to stay out of trouble. Southern district overrun by bandits, western district in protests, eastern district controlled by bandits and terrorists from The White Fang, not to mention northern district with which we lost all contact…

-Did you say White Fang?-Nick was even more interested

-Well…yes?

-I have unfinished business with mr. Taurus. I gotta get him

-We'll help you with him but first you need to do something for us

-Can you finally tell me what is it?

-The bandits in southern district started to kidnap citizens for ransom. Recently they became insolent enough to kidnap Haven's staff. We payed them once, but we won't do it again. I want you to find the leader of these bandits and bring him to me. Dead or alive, you choose

-But…I'm gonna need some information…

-No worries. I know a place in the south where you can start. It's a nightclub so you should start in the evening. It's called „Dante will cry". Good luck

„Dante will cry" thought Nick „Retards who set this club up surely didn't know Dante already had a cry. But he will never do so again. Because…can the darkness cry?" and he went out of Tromberg's office. Helga was sitting alone in her room but then Qrow and Mikaelsen came back inside:

-Is everything going smoothly?-asked Branwen

-Just as planned. He will not even know when someone sticks a knife in his ribcage-replied Tromberg

-I'm taking your word for it-said Qrow

Meanwhile Nick was spending the rest of his day as he wanted to. He was walking around Haven, hanging out with his roommates and team SSSN. Later he was admiring a fountain in the courtyard when he suddenly felt as someone walks in his direction. He didn't care, as he was too busy admiring the view…and that was his mistake. About seconds later he was hit in the face by water as someone pushed him there. He was cursing this person in his mind. The water got into his hat, which made him really angry. He looked outside the fountain, spitting out the water that got in his mouth when he noticed the person who pushed him there:

-Hahahahahhahahaha!-she giggled. Of course her voice was extremely squeaky. It was Ruby-You should have seen your face when you were tripping

-For fuck's sake, Ruby!-Nick was not angry anymore. He was rather shocked and kinda happy that someone decided to make him feel so awkward-Just wait, when I get out you're gonna see fishies!

But he didn't get out of the fountain. Ruby disappeared for a second and in a blink of an eye she tackled Nick to the water even more. She was lying on top of him, grinning. Nick's hair was entirely soaked in water. She then took his hat and put it on her head:

-Hey! Gimme back my hat!-he yelled, laughing

-Nuh-uh-uh-she replied-first you gotta say you're not angry anymore and then you gotta…hmmmmm…surprise me-Ruby's grin was even wider after these words-so…are you still angry?

-No, no, I'm good-he replied and spitted out water from his mouth

-Good boy-said the girl and giggled. While she focused Van Thorne already made a plan in his head

He pushed forward at Ruby and eventually roles turned around-this time Ruby was in the water. Her hair got wet in a moment and her skirt clinged to her even more:

-Now what will you do, huh?-Nick said and smiled. His hat landed in his hand because when he was turning Ruby around she accidentally threw it into the air. He put the hat back on his head:

-Alright, cowboy-said Ruby. The tone of her voice suddenly got…different-you got me. Now, come closer and claim your prize…

Nick heard a lot of times about Silver Eyed Warriors. They were ruthless killers, sometimes using their birth given power to cause chaos everywhere. They could practically do anything. And Ruby, unintentionally, used that power at that moment. The hypnosis from her eyes drew Van Thorne into something horrible. He started to lean his head against hers. Their lips almost touched…

But then they heard as someone calls Ruby from a distance. Nick recognized that voice-it was Nora.

-Ooops…sorry cowboy. Gotta go for now-she said and let go of him. Nick finally went out of the fountain. While he was squeezing the water out of his clothes and hair he was following Ruby, curious where she was going. Some time later he noticed that there is cantine nearby. Ruby was already inside because when she was going there Nick was still stuck in fountain. There were no doors to the cantine-there was only a hole through which students were coming inside. Nick was about to get inside…when he heard someone there mentioning his name. He immediately clinged into a nearby wall, slowly peeked from behind it and activated his Hexman hear:

-All I'm saying is we might never meet someone like that again-said some other higher voice. It still had lower tones than the annoying voice of Ruby. The voice belonged to Nora-We shouldn't give him reasons to alienate from us

-You seriously wanna be friends with him?-said the characteristic voice of Jaune-I really have doubts about this guy

-Jaune Arc, are you implying that you're jealous?-replied Nora and poked his nose with her finger

-Jealous? I should rather be sorry-laughed the blonde guy while pushing Nora's finger away

-You start to shit talk again-said Pyrrha, who was sitting on one of the edges of the bench they were all sitting by. Her legs were on the table and she was looking at something in a magizne she held in her hands

-No one asked for your opinion, Pyrrha-said Jaune

-We'll see how you'll feel sorry when he proves to be stronger-she replied calmly. She clearly wanted to provoke him

-What did you just say?!-Arc was getting even more pissed off

-Hey guys calm down-said Nora-no one's gonna prove anything. Jaune, you need to understand that not everyone grew up with normal people

„Normal people? Hexmen were much more human than you are now, you fucking two-faced shitbags" thought Nick and clenched his fist

All this time Yang, Blake and Ruby were sitting nearby. Ruby tried to desperately make her sister and Blake friends again:

-Yang, try to look at this from Blake's perspective-she said-You were unconscious. Blake lost her temper so she ran after the one who did this to you. There is nothing treacherous in this. I'm sure that after she got him she'd come back to you

-That she already understands, I hope at least-said Blake-now I want to get to the recent case we're salty about. Yang?

-What?

-You and Nick…is that for real?

Yang's eyes became red again. She looked like she wanted to slaugher Blake right there and right now:

-Yang calm down. Blake is not here to judge your relationship-said Ruby

-Oh, but she already did! Called me a liar and my feelings considered as theater! How could anyone keep their calm if someone talks stuff like that?!-yelled Yang

-Yang, that's because you did it all of a sudden. And I'm trying to look at this from Nick's perspective. Don't you see how our behavior troubles him? He never experienced friendship, comradery, not to mention love. And we act as if we were Nora's hammers who are here to hit him in the face with something else than he knew there was

-You might be right Blake, but consider the fact that Yang is not gonna have team first in her hierarchy. She has fallen in love with Nick. I know it might look like an obsession and I still don't know how could it happen in such a short time, but we have to accept that, with no exception for you. Will you do so?-asked Ruby

-No!-Blake almost yelled

-Why?

-Because…Because she's not the only one who is in love here!-yelled Blake. Tears formed in her eyes

Yang and Ruby looked at each other, first a little confused. Then, when Yang finally understood what Blake had in mind her hair started to glow like fire. It should have been clear-Blake was in big trouble now. But then…a miracle happened

-OH SHUT THE FUCK UP! ALL OF YOU!-screamed the voice who was quiet this entire time. Surprisingly, it belonged to Ren

Everyone suddenly became calm, yet a little scared. Some people thought that Ren can't get angry as he seemed emotionless. But he got angry, and that scared everyone. Even Nick shuddered. Ren just rolled his eyes at everyone else in the cantine and said with a different voice he usually had:

-Have you no honor? Are you blind like moles? Can't you see what are we all doing here? Nick counts on us, believes we may change his fate, and we are talking behind his back. Does it matter if he gets angry from time to time? It doesn't, because he has much bigger problems on his shoulders. My master, may Maidens watch over his soul, used to tell me stories about how Hexmen see reality. They're always pessimists, so that they don't feel disappointed. And because he is one, he probably hears us now in one way or another and feels that disappointment. You know why? Because we were first to unleash his human side. Nora, did you see how happy he was when you complimented his semblance? Jaune, did you see how respectful he was towards you? Pyrrha, you and Yang surely have biggest concerns right now. He saved you, even though you were complete strangers to him. It should have been obvious to you. You unleashed his good side. Why are you now trying to destroy it all? You can think and say whatever you want but mark my words. I will not waste my friendship with him. According to the famous saying „A friend in need is a friend indeed"-he then sat back as he got up from his spot just to say these words.

Nick couldn't take this anymore. He slowly walked into the cantine and walked past the bench everyone was sitting by. He was walking towards the buffet to get something to drink. When he got into the dispensor and started to pour some green cocktail into his glass, Ren suddenly approached him. He was pouring the same goo into his glass:

-Did you sleep well?-he asked out of the blue

-It surely wasn't as bad as sleeping in a cardboard box

-Mhm. So you experienced that too?-asked Ren

-Fortunately it only happened once-replied Van Thorne

After that Nick sat alone by the different bench. Ren took a seat next to him:

-Tromberg's sending me out on a mission to the riots-said the Hexman suddenly. He felt like he could tell Ren anything. And he also gained his respect because of what he said

-Is she mad?-said Ren, this time with his calm voice

-Don't worry. I've been in worse situations

-But have you seen what these bandits in southern district do? They enslave people! This is so terrifying

-It's nothing, Ren. You should have seen what happened in my town. When these monsters came to kill us and I was locked in the shed, I've seen as mothers weep seeing their infants impaled right in front of them

-What kind of monster does something like that?!

-A human, Ren-Nick raised his eyes at him-A human

Nick drank the rest of his cocktail and stood up from the bench. He was walking towards the exit from the cantine. Jaune followed him.

The sun was about to hide beyond the horizon. The shattered moon was slowly starting to glow. And Nick was walking towards the exit from Haven as fast as possible. When he was by the gate, it was already evening. He then heard as someone calls him:

-Hey, Van Thorne!

Nick turned around. It was Jaune:

-What is it, Arc?

-Where do you think you're going so late?

-It's barely evening. None of your business

-Are you trying to run away? Leave us? Is that how you treat a friend?

-Let me state this clear, dude-said Nick and pointed his finger at Jaune-YOU are not my friend

-What are you talking about?

-You treat your friends like nothing. And yet you have the audacity to educate me on this? Look at Pyrrha. You made her depressed, shattered her glass heart like it was another window to escape! You try to play Innocent while inside you are simillar to a demon

-That's it, freak!-Jaune did a quick gesture with his hand and his sword and shield were in his hands-You're gonna fall by my blade now!

-Try your luck-said Nick while his swords started to appear in his hands

Arc started. He jumped at Nick with a battle cry. His sky attack could be deadly, but Van Thorne just jumped to the left, making his opponent hit the ground with the sword. Then Nick attacked. He dashed towards Jaune and started to wave his hands in a terrifying dance of the two blades. Jaune was surprisingly deflecting his blows wih his sword and a shield, but fairly enough he started to get tired. Nick was only warming up. His hits were starting to get dangerous for Arc. This gave him a sadistic feeling that was starting to make him lose it to the Grimm side:

-Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless!-Van Thorne was yelling with joy when Jaune started to get weaker

But then his opponent blocked his blow and instead of holding the shield, he hit the blade which attacked him. This would knock the sword out of Nick's hand but the mechanism's ropes were tying him to his weapons. The sword flew a little bit before it came back to Nick's hand. But it was enough for Jaune to hit Nick in the face with his shield. The Hexman got stunned for a second, which brought him back the balance. He touched his face-a small stream of blood was coming from his nose, but the glasses and the rest of his face was fine. He quickly stopped the bleeding by putting his nose back at the right position and looked at Jaune:

-Impressive-he said-but...let's see if you can keep up with this!

At this moment he pressed something on his wrists and his swords went lower. Van Thorne wasn't holding them by their handles anymore. He was holding them by the ropes that were attaching them to his arms. He then started to swing his blades like whips. Jaune was too shocked to be able to deflect his blows:

-You pose no threat to me, Arc! Especially after what you did to Pyrrha! I will chop you like a fish for sushi, you piece of shit!

Finally, Jaune got tired. The swinging blades were too much for him. He screamed as loud as he could:

-Stop! Stop! I surrender! Stop!

At this moment the swords hit the ground in front of him and started to come back to their master. When Nick got a hold of them, they hid back in his sleeves. He slowly walked up to the barely breathing Jaune:

-Don't play any tricks with me-said the Hexman-put your weapons down

Jaune did as Nick told him to. After that he ducked in front of the kneeling Jaune:

-You see now? This is why you're not my friend

-I will become stronger...

-I highly doubt that. You will never do it by yourself. I may train you if you promise me one thing

-What do you want?

-You won't tell anyone what happened here and you will apologize to Pyrrha about yesterday. But don't try to win her back. You lost her for good. And she knows it best. Alright?

-Alright-he said and slowly stood up with the help of Nick

After that they separated. Jaune got back to Haven, while Nick climbed the wall separating Haven from the rest of Mistral and jumped over it. Jaune looked at him for the last time and smiled to himself. „I will not tell anyone" he thought „but I will not apologize to anyone, forget it".

Meanwhile, Nick was running through the already empty streets of the southern district. Surprisingly enough the streets were empty already. „Maybe everyone is scared? Those bandits must be reckless. Who could organise people like this? Was it The White Fang? Cinder? Atlas? I must know. I cannot slaughter these faunus terrorists in the eastern district while people who will come after me will get easily kidnapped. I need to be quick, silent and strong. As far as I remember from studying city maps, the entertainment street must be nearby. I must focus. Focus. Focus..."

Then Nick heard some voices on the street and sounds of a fight. He quickly jumped by the nearest wall without looking in front of him and focused his Hexman hearing sense. „3 people. Shouldn't be a problem" he thought as he was reloading his gun and attaching a silencer to it. He jumped from behind his wall and took a closer look.

There were indeed 3 people. 2 were guys in white suits with baseball caps on their heads and red sunglasses. They were beating up the 3rd person who was lying on the ground. Nick didn't look at him. He just straight up fired his gun, aiming at both of the guys in white suits. They both hit the floor with holes in their throats. Then Nick walked up closer to the 3rd guy lying on the floor:

-Don't shoot!-he said. It didn't sound like a plead. Rather like an order. That person stood up. Nick could finally get a better view at him.

It was an average looking guy wearing a white coat and black pants. When he got up he picked up a black bowler hat with a red band and put it on his head. Nick then noticed as he puts some locks of his orange hair on his right eye with his hands dressed in black gloves, making a bang. His left eye wasn't covered, yet he had little eyeliner drawn under it, which fitted perfectly his long eyelashes. He also picked up something else from the ground-a gray cane with a red edge. After that he ducked and picked something else from the ground, but after looking at it for a second he curved his lips and threw the object away:

-It was my last cigar-he said through his teeth to himself. His voice, no matter how he appeared sounded very harsh and quite evil. After that he turned around to Nick and walked up closer to him:

-Was wondering when this will happen-he said

-Excuse me?-Van Thorne felt confused and didn't know how to react-Do I know you?

-Almost forgot you didn't really see this...-he said and suddenly the look on his face got a little more friendly

-Don't play games with me!-said Nick and aimed his gun at him-Who are you?!

-Calm down. I'm not here for your money-he said in, indeed, calming tone. But straight up after that his voice slightly changed tone-hide the gun

Nick hid the gun, still suspicious about this ginger guy. When the other guy saw that Hexman hid the weapon he took his hat off and nodded:

-I'm Roman Torchwick. I steal Dust and trouble nightclubs for living. And you must be Nicholas Van Thorne, aren't you?

-Yes, that's me

-Well then-replied Roman, put his hat back on, walked up to him and embraced him-allow me to show you my gratitude, Hexman

-Eh...heheh...don't mention it-mumbled Nick, feeling confused

Torchwick let him go and waved his finger near his face:

-No no no. That would be too rude, even for me. The White Fang might be the ones ungrateful towards those who saved their lives twice, but not me

-Huh?-Nick didn't understand-twice?

-You...you don't remember, do you?-Torchwick looked like he was about to burst out laughing-I should refresh your memory then...Dante's domain. You came there for someone. As you know, you Hexmen always return through a portal made at the same place as you landed in first. But how is it happening? By magically widening the rift of course!

„Damn it! He's right! When I teleported to hell, I forgot to seal the rift! If there were souls with magical talent...oh god. How many souls did possibly flee from Dante's kingdom?" thought Nick.

-Even though I was trapped for a short time there, just one day makes you beg for coming out. You came there, left a rift so I ran through it. Took me so long to find you and say „thank you", thought this will never happen. But you made me a very nice surprise!-after he finished he spread his arms. While he was talking he was swinging his cane around

-I understand it now. Saved you two times...first in hell, now here

-You're a smart one-replied Torchwick with a sarcasm and smiled. After that he walked up to the corpses of people who were beating him up...and kicked one of them-fucking western mobsters

-They're not from here?

-No. The western part of the city is in protests. Something about working rights, equality in payment, blah blah blah, doesn't matter. Those bastards, mobsters, lose their income with that, because places they control start to rise not only against the retarded council but also against them. So they jump through the barricades each city part built here to find new ways to get rich. Persistent...but pathetic-he then turned back at Nick again after inspecting further the rest-got a smoke?

-Yeah-said Nick and took out his pack with cigarettes from his coat. Roman took one out by himself, took a lighter out of his pocket and lit the cigarette in his mouth. After he put the lighter back in his pocket, he took it out of his mouth and exhaled a stream of smoke from his mouth

-So...what brings you to Mistral this late?

-And what do you think brings me?

-I dunno. Maybe...job?-Roman sounded intriguing

-That I already have

-Oh really?

-I need to get to „Dante Will Cry"

-You've got guts, I will tell you that. You left the safe walls of Haven, went deep into southern Mistral just to get laid? Don't you have enough sluts in your schools?

-I'm not going there for this-Nick was getting irritated-I need to catch the leader of people who kidnap for ransom

-Whoa whoa whoa! This is not ransom. They just ask them to follow them. And they have a cause. But, you know what? I can't think straight without a drink. The club is nearby…and as an VIP I have a pass that will get you to your target in no time

-Why do you want to help me?

-I'm just repaying you. You might as well consider me „your friend" from now on

After that he started to walk in the opposite direction to Nick. The Hexman followed him and stood next to him:

-You said you could lead me to my target through that club. You think he's there?-he asked

-I know this for 99%, Nick. Simply because he owns this club

-What?!

-Yes. His name is Hei Xiong, but everyone calls him „Junior". You know, simply to create a paradox. Just like as if someone fat was called by everyone „Skinny"

-You mean he's old?

-Not THAT old but looks old for sure

-Should I be…scared of him?

-Junior? Pfffff…no. He acts tough but is not really a dangerous person. I would rather worry about his two personal bodyguards if I were you

-Why?

-You can't simply recognize them. They will attack you in the most unexpected moment. They are reckless, and if Junior tells them to kill you they won't hesitate-at that moment Roman stopped and pointed forward with his cane-Look, here we are!

The entertainment street in Mistral was silent. Except for one spot. That spot was Nick's target-nightclub „Dante Will Cry". Hexman was staring at it, very impressed about its design on the outside. Neon billboards were flashing everywhere, making it look beautiful at night. And to think that was the only spot glowing while the rest of the street was dark and grey.

Roman took Nick closer to the club but they didn't walk into the front door. Instead they went into a hidden door on the right. Torchwick walked to the doors and knocked a few times with his cane. Someone opened the eyehole on the door:

-Who's there?!-the voice said loudly from behind

-Think for a second-replied Torchwick, while ending his cigarette from Nick

-Oh, it's you. Come on in-the guard behind the door closed the eyehole and opened the door-and who is that?

-My friend. I owe him-replied Torchwick and winked to the guard

-Okay then

Nick and Roman walked through a narrow corridor. After a couple of minutes they stopped by some other door. Loud, aggrotech music could be heard from the other side of the door:

-Alright, here's the plan. I will locate Junior. Everyone knows me here, so everyone tells me everything. But it's hard to find a person who will tell you what you need at the moment. So…have fun while I am doing all the hard work for you, hehe

-Roman, I didn't ask you for this

-I won't even hear of it! I will return the favor this way, unless you have another concept

-Ummmmmmm…

-That's what I thought. Now…let's go

Roman slowly opened the door. When Nick entered the main club hall, the first thing he felt was that annoying bass shaking the floor. Van Thorne could feel the vibrations of the aggrotech music coming out of the huge speakers on two sides of the DJ, who dressed up in a black suit and had a bear mascot head on his. This club was dark, the only light being the colorful reflectors, their light bouncing off the floor back into the ceiling. People around Nick were dancing, but he didn't really care about them. Roman already disappeared in that crowd, so Nick was desperately thinking while spontaneously he was coming through the crowd. At that moment he saw a bar. "There. I will just sit, grab a couple of drinks and when Roman comes back I will arrest Junior. I still don't see his bodyguards, Torchwick never said how do they look like. Well…not the time to think about it now. I will just grab a drink and generally be nice".

Nick sat on a bar stool. The waiter slowly walked up to him:

-Sake and whiskey. With ice-he quickly said

The waiter just nodded and walked away. After about a minute he came back with a glass full of ice and bottles of the alcohol the Hexman ordered. He poured sake and whiskey into Van Thorne's glass and was about to walk away when Nick stopped him:

-You can leave the bottles-he said

The waiter just nodded and left the bottles on the counter. Nick started to fill himself with this liquid. He never really thought of trying alcohol in that big scale. Back home at Gwynbleidd a lot of Hexmen were drinking mead and beer. But one day when Nick was at the inn after training he tried it for the first time. As he was barely 13 at that time, he spat the liquid right at his teacher who happened to sit next to him. The teacher whooped him hard that day but as the time was passing Nick's desire to be like his comrades was making him crazy. With the funniest wry faces he could have ever made he was drinking beer and mead, watching carefully not to spit anything. Finally, at the age of 18 he got used to it. Now, at the nightclub, he was drinking glass after glass and all that was happening to him was a little shiver. But as soon as the bottles were getting empty and the ice cubes were melting into freezing water, Nick's mind was drifting away. He wasn't at the nightclub anymore with his soul. He was at the domain of his mind, where he could see what happened to him all the time. Training at Gwynbleidd, the death of his parents, life as a vagabond and mercenary and finally his arrival to Vale and present life. When he finally got into the present moment of his life in his mind's domain he slightly came back to his senses. He still felt a little tired, he had a terrible headache. Of course, it was a hangover already. Hexmen were really fast at getting rid of alcoholic power and replacing it with this pulsing headache. He looked at the bottles-they were empty. Both of them. Even the ice in his glass melted. He drank the freezing water and it made him overcome the pain in his head…slightly. At that moment he felt as two people approach him. But not from behind, not from the sides. They were walking on a counter. When the Hexman looked up, he saw two girls, each on one of his sides. One of them was in a white, lacy dress, had blue eyeshadow, green eyes and long black hair. The other one had the same dress but red, red eyeshadow, green eyes and short black hair. "Is this a dream? Or maybe some kind of prank? I'm not falling for it" he thought. But the girls were too tempting. They started to dance on the counter to the rhythm of the music. They were looking just at him and when anyone else was trying to get their attention, they were just ignoring him. When the track changed, the two girls got down from the counter, sat on bar stools on Nick's sides and clinged into his arms. At that moment the waiter came to him to take the glass and the empty bottles:

-Lucky you, dude. You caught the attention of the twin ladies of the night. It's really hard to do so. But I guess anyone would be attracted if someone emptied two bottles of alcohol and could still keep his ass on the stool-he said

-Awwww, don't listen to him-said the girl in the white dress-you're just a handsome little boy so we might as well keep you company for tonight

-Now, wanna buy us a drink?-asked the girl in the red dress and smiled

-Alright. Waiter-Nick said. The same guy came back-three times tequila

-Awwww, little cutie knows how to satisfy a girl-said the one in white dress in a seductive tone and giggled

-Hey Melanie-said the other one-we should check if he's good at satisfying in the back room too

-Good idea, Miltia-laughed the girl with long black hair

The waiter heard what they said. His eyes almost popped out of the eye sockets:

-Girls, aren't you going a bit too far tonight?-he said

-Shut up, that's not what we're paying you for-said Melanie with a more harsh tone. Waiter got scared and walked away

Nick and the two girls drank their glasses of tequila. The Hexman was tired and had an even worse headache. But Melanie and Miltia seemed as if for them fun has just begun. Nick barely was present when they were dragging him by the hand through a different corridor than the previous one. He was just repeating same word-"no".

When he later found strength to look around he was lying on bed, cuffed and naked. The two girls dragged him probably to the room they talked about, the so-called "back room". At the moment they both were crawling in bed on his sides, clinging to him. He already felt tired and could barely breathe. "Am I going to be raped? What is even going on?" even though Nick was weak, his mind was working normally. Then he heard as Melanie giggles next to him:

-Alright, sis. You already had him for yourself. Now it's my turn-she said and jumped on him. Nick, almost unconscious, could only see as Melanie slides down his body

-What…what are you doing?-Nick mumbled

-Oh? What's that? Cutie woke up? Relax and let me repay you for being so handsome my eyes never felt better

-Can you get off me, please?-said Nick, still very sleepy

-I can-said Melanie and looked him straight in the eyes-but then you will never get a key to these cuffs

-I can…break these…cuffs-he mumbled, weaker again

-You can't break those cuffs-replied the girl in white dress (well already without it) and giggled

-Nnnnnnngh!-grunted Nick, feeling even weaker

-Besides, why would you wanna break them? You and Miltia look so cute after what you did-Melanie added and giggled again

"That's it. I already was raped. Is this even possible? Can a man go to a police station and say that HE was raped? I think not. But what am I talking even about? In Gwynbleidd we never had police and we were taking care of everything people wanted help with. We were never getting involved in rapes unless someone wanted a revenge on rapists. Oh wait sometimes men were coming to us asking us to castrate a rapist. But they wanted it because their daughters were victims or something like that. Here it is completely different. I am cuffed to the bed, already raped by one girl I barely met and now raped again by another girl I barely met. What is happening in Remnant? Since we stated in the Brotherhood that we won't care about what happens in kingdoms a lot must have happened. But was it for worse or better? I think…it was…worse…" Nick couldn't finish his thoughts because he suddenly passed out. The last thing he felt was Melanie getting off him.

Nick slept for about an hour. That's what he thought when he looked at his watch. But something different happened before it. Nick wasn't asleep but he couldn't force his eyes to open. They were too heavy. But his ears were fine. He could still feel the cuffs on his hands:

-Christ, what the hell did you do to him?-Nick heard an unknown male voice

-You told us to be nice to him so we did our best-replied Melanie's voice

-You took advantage of him. You think that was nice?

-Oh Junior why do you care? It already happened, he was amazing-said the voice of Miltia

"So this is Junior's voice? He surely sounds too young to be called old" Nick thought

-Take these cuffs off him damnit!-yelled Junior's voice suddenly-At least you didn't kill him I hope

-Now we know that if we did, we would surely regret it-said the voice of Melanie that was now closer to him. Nick then felt as the cuffs get off his wrists. "Jesus they were tight" he then realised

-Miltia, correct your skirt a little bit. I can see your panties from where I'm standing-said Junior

-You can look elsewhere-grunted Miltia in response

-Yeah you're right. Now, we need to wake him up. Where are his clothes, Melanie?-said Junior

-I have them here-Melanie replied

-Good-Junior replied and paused for a second-I have these smelling salts, they should wake him up

After a couple of seconds Nick's nose was exposed to probably the worst stench he could have ever imagined. This caused him to immediately open his eyes and sit on the bed

-Ha! They work!-laughed Junior. Nick finally got a better view at him

The owner of "Dante Will Cry" wasn't as old as Roman said he is. Even though he had a little black beard with a moustache, that was all that was making him old. Besides that he was tall, had short black hair and gray eyes. He was dressed in black dress pants and white dress shirt with a black vest over it. He also wore a red tie, which was clearly visible under this vest. Nick was just about to jump at him when he realised he still had no clothes on and his swords were in the coat:

-Relax, friend. We're not going to hurt you-said Junior in a calming tone. Melanie and Miltia slowly layed him back down on the bed-now, let's have a little talk. Who are you and why did you come to arrest me?

-Nobody you should know about-replied Nick

-You have the heaviest coat in the world. When I looked in your sleeves I saw mechanisms hiding two giant swords and two long caliber guns. Someone armed like that is not "nobody". Now I will ask again. Who are you?

-Your mother-Nick said and laughed

-You're really uncreative with your insults. Why are you so hostile? I've been nothing but nice to you so far

-You mean me getting raped by your 2 bodyguards is called being nice nowadays?

-Malachite sisters are the best bodyguards I could get in Vale. And the fact that they want to have fun from time to time doesn't make them bad people

-But I have a girlfriend damnit! Couldn't you just knock me out and tie me to a chair or something?

-I didn't come up with this! It was their idea

-Yes. And we apologize-said Miltia suddenly-we were behaving selfish and rude

-See?

-You could've made them say that-replied Nick-alright, I hope I will somehow roll with this

-No. They are really sorry. I knew them for a while and if Hei made them say that they would sound completely different-said suddenly a different voice. Its owner walked into the room. Nick was shocked

-Roman? But why?-he asked

-Trust me, it's for your own good

-Right now I doubt if I did the right thing

-I get that you may be shocked. But I need to tell you why Roman did this. You see…it has something to do with me-Junior bumped into the conversation

-Huh?

-Tell him, Junior. Seems like Tromberg really beguiled him. Hurry before he starts screaming "Hail The Police"

-She is not guilty in this! Alright. You see…this used to be my home. I mean Mistral. I used to serve at Haven. Me and one other guy were Tromberg's bodyguards. But one day the other guy did something very, very bad. Unfortunately I was blamed for it and I had to run. I escaped to Vale. There, I opened a club and started being a thug, hiding my rank. But when Grimm broke through the wall and all this drama at Vytal happened me and my bodyguards escaped and ended up here. I opened a club and hired an army of mercenaries to take control over this district. Mainly because I don't want this guy to escape

-So, here's the deal-Roman interrupted Junior half sentence-We need to find evidence on the guy. All you need to do is open the gate for Melanie and Miltiades. They know what to do. Girls, when you gather the intel head back here as fast as possible we don't want Tromberg to capture you

-Hey hey hey!-yelled Nick. He woke up entirely-who are we hunting for?

-There is no time to explain that right now. Hurry up. Get dressed and we'll meet you by the entrance-said Melanie

Everyone walked out of the room. When Nick made sure no one is inside he quickly put on his clothes, carefully putting hands through his "armed sleeves". He checked the mecahnisms-all the weapons were inside, untouched. But when he was about to get out of the room, Junior suddenly came back inside:

-I almost forgot, Nick-he said

-Yeah?

Van Thorne then noticed Junior has something in his hands. It looked like another piece of clothing. He sighed annoyed and said:

-You know I already have one sweater. I don't need another one

-This is not a sweater-Junior replied-just…try this on. I need to see if it's long enough

Nick took the piece of clothing and unfolded it. It was a purple cape:

-Junior, I'm too old for superheroes you know that?

-It's not the purpose of it. It's a special cape. It will identify you in southern district as friendly

-Oh, alright then. It will help a lot. Thanks

Nick was going through the main club hall to the main entrance. He could then understand why Roman helped him through that corridor on the side. It was very hard to come through all these people blocking the way. But eventually Nick succeeded and went through the front door. Melanie and Miltia were waiting near it, sitting on a barricade:

-There you are!-Melanie sounded happy-ready to go?

-Ummmmmm…yeah-Nick felt very awkward. After all these girls acted as if nothing happened. He was walking right behind them while they were on the front, talking to each other. At one point they turned back at Nick:

-Come closer-said Miltia. Nick walked up between the Malachite twins and blushed. They both slipped their hands underneath his

-That's better-said Melanie and laughed

Nick and the two girls were walking like that towards the wall to Haven. Throughout that they were talking. Nick was fighting his thoughts. One part of him was telling him to stay away from Junior's 2 pretty bodyguards, the other was telling him to do the opposite. While they were fighting for dominance it was looking from the girls' perspective as if Nick was just extremely awkward. But the other side ultimately won and Nick completely didn't care anymore about what happened in the back room. He just treated his two new companions like his friends. When they finally arrived by the gate to Haven, Nick took out his identifier and opened the gate:

-Get inside. I'm right behind you-he said

But then Nick heard something. It came from the distance. A distance from where no one would hear it. Van Thorne then looked in the direction from where the sound came. There was smoke coming from it. He got intrigued by it:

-Get what you need. I'll be back in a second-he said. The Malachite sisters just nodded and ran into Haven. Nick closed the gate and ran towards the sound he heard.

After about 2 minutes all Van Thorne's concerns about the sound were gone. It was a cry for help. Someone must have been in trouble. As Nick was running, jumping through obstacles on his way he was fighting his thoughts again. "Maybe it's a trap? But who would do that? Junior and his people control this place so there should be no problem. Well, there definitely won't be because I have this cape now. And even if they dare attack me I still have a surprise up my sleeve for them. I can hear the cry closer now. Just where it is? That destroyed building here. That's where the smoke comes from. I need to look there. The cries are silent for now, but someone has to be there. I'm going in" he thought. Indeed he arrived at some destroyed flat, a total shanty. Nick saw that the smoke comes from what used to be probably someone's room. Nick jumped at the nearest former floor. It was the one where the smoke was coming from. He slowly walked towards it. There were still doors to that room. He kicked them open and heard a squeak.

What used to be the room was already almost destroyed. There was nothing but just a fireplace, an empty stool with a radio on it and a chair. Someone was tied to it. Nick looked closer.

It was a short, skinny girl with pale blue eyes and long, white hair. Her hair was tied to a ponytail. She also had a pale blue bolero jacket over a thigh-length dress, black lace by her neckline and white, heeled wedge boots that go to mid-calf. She was tied to the chair with ropes and her mouth was covered with insulating tape. When she saw Nick, her eyes went wide. Van Thorne then noticed a scar around one of her eyes. On the other hand he got confused, but slowly walked up to her and took out his steel sword. She screamed, scared that Nick might do something to her, but the tape was silencing her scream. She closed her eyes. But Nick just made a quick cut and the ropes that were tying her fell off. She first looked at her hands, while Nick ducked in front of her and ripped the tape off her mouth. Then she looked closer at him…and pinned him to the ground, hugging him tightly:

-Thank you, thank you, thank you!-she was saying through her tears. Nick was slowly shaking her off

-Alright I get it. Stop squeezing me so hard, you'll break my spine

When she finally let go of Nick, she sat on her knees and Van Thorne could finally catch a breath:

-You…you were calling for help, right?-he asked, just to be sure. He was still hardly breathing

-Yes, but…how did you hear it? I was gagged, after all. Wait…who are you?

Nick took off his hat and sunglasses. He also pulled off the bandana he still had on:

-Nick Van Thorne. And you are…

-Weiss Schnee-replied the girl quickly-you're a Hexman?

-That's right. How do you see it? Is that because of my eyes?

-Not really. It's because he has your photo. And he's looking for you. We need to get out of here, quickly!

-What? Who has my photo? Hey! What's wrong with you, hey!

Schnee's younger daughter cowered in fear. But she wasn't looking at Nick. She was looking right behind him. Nick turned around…and saw someone.

This time it was a guy. He was tall and very skinny, even more than Weiss. He had a dark grey coat, slightly shorter than Nick's, suit pants in the same colour and elegant black boots. He also had a dark blue scarf around his mouth and a black tophat on his head. He had a staff in his hand, which he used to walk, its handle was a big, orange gem held by three eagle-like claws. Nick thought he already seen him before:

-It's been so long, my dear friend-he said and ducked in front of Nick. He was on the ground just like Weiss. The girl clinged to Van Thorne. Then Nick noticed something not right about this guy's eyes. One of them was more flashy than the other one. It looked like it was cybernetic. Nick pulled out his gun and pointed it at the stranger

-Who are you?!-he said

-Same freak as you, my dear friend-replied the guy with the weird eye and got closer to Nick, letting his gun touch his forehead-the question is…why do you want to shoot me?

-Please, mr. Vengh! Don't tie me to the chair anymore-cried Weiss behind Van Thorne

-No, princess. You are free, now that he is here-replied the stranger

-Vengh? I think I know that surname-said Nick and took the gun away from the stranger's head-just who the hell are you?

-Nick, how come you forget your friends so easily?-replied the stranger and stood up. Nick and Weiss did the same. The stranger then pulled the scarf off his mouth. He had a light beard and a characteristic smile. When Nick saw it, he immediately reminded himself who that guy was. Shock hit him like lightning. Never in his life has he ever experienced such shock. Suddenly all the memories from his hometown came. Back when it was peaceful. Back when his parents were alive. Back when he wasn't like he was now:

-W…W…W…W…W…William?!-Nick said, stuttering like never before.


	9. Junior's secret

-How the HELL are you alive?!-yelled Nick

Will gave Van Thorne a very piercing look with a half smile. Then Nick noticed that the colors of his eyes…don't match:

-Thanks to a few improvements I became good as new-Vengh replied and laughed. Then he spread his arms and Nick came closer to him. They embraced each other. Nick was smiling the whole time

-I thought you were dead-said Nick

-I was-Will replied-but later about that. We should get going. I spotted those who really live here and I'd rather avoid these people. Hey, princess! You're untied, so you're gonna walk. Just follow us, okay?

-I am NOT going anywhere with you, traitors!-Weiss suddenly yelled and pouted

-What the hell is she talking about?

-Her father gave me a contract for a couple of Liens. I was sent here to scout for Atlas military. This chick keeps following me since I started to work for her daddy. Calls me traitor even though she has no proof-replied Will and shrugged

-I HAVE proof-yelled Weiss and jumped straight in front of Will and pointed her finger at his nose-I know you're taking bribes and that you're a spy working for Lavender's crew!

-Lavender?-Will was confused-who is that?

Weiss' teeth started to grind in anger. Vengh was starting to wind her up to the maximum. She just doesn't like him. She doesn't like the fact that he's not fully human, she hates his behavior and how he treats her dad. She promised herself she will keep on spying on him and maybe one day find out that he is not who he thinks he is. Of course Will doesn't take bribes because nobody tries to give him one and doesn't work for Lavender, but if he did…she just wanted to make sure if it could possibly be true. Now this Nick came along too and he at first looked like a nice guy, but when Weiss was looking at him, something bad came to her mind. „I bet he is a huge pervert. I can see where he's looking with those emerald eyes" she thought and turned back at Will:

-Weiss, I think you should first get evidence if you want to accuse anyone of something-Nick said, still with his eyes staring at Weiss' shapely legs, which totally took all his attention. Weiss looked at him with anger in her eyes. But then the look on her face changed a bit. She didn't look mad anymore

-Like what you see?-she said in a seductive tone and walked up closer to him. Nick quickly looked up to pretend like he didn't stare…but Weiss was faster. Next thing Nick felt was a very painful kick straight in the crotch. Weiss kicked him with such an impact, she made him kneel. Van Thorne started to hiss from pain-keep dreaming then! Because you're gonna be crushed in there if you keep staring at me like that you perv…-at that moment Weiss paused, because Will suddenly covered her nose and mouth with a tissue. Schnee started to kick in every direction in anger, but Will just ruthlessly held the tissue by her nose until she finally stopped and her body became limp. Vengh gently put her on the ground. Her eyes were closed and she wasn't moving:

-There. Much better without her yapping-he said

-What did you do to her?!-said Nick while he was getting up. He was scared because she was lying completely still. He still felt the pain in the crotch a little bit

-Just put her to sleep with chloroform. She'll be unconscious for a couple of hours. We should get out quickly before she wakes up

Vengh walked out of the room Nick found Weiss in. For a second Van Thorne was in shock. He couldn't process properly everything that happened. About 5 minutes later he heard Will on the corridor:

-Come on. The junkies who live here will come soon too

-No-Nick replied. His voice was very calm. He gave Will a very hard look-I'm not leaving this girl here. If Schnee finds out that his younger daughter is regularly raped and takes drugs in a routine cycle he's gonna come after you. I will not let that happen-after these words Van Thorne took Weiss in his hands. She was weirdly light. Right after that he walked out of the room. Vengh awaited him in the corridor. He clearly didn't like his friend's idea:

-You're different, Nickson-said Will, using the popular phrase they used as kids, while walking right behind him

-Indifferent as always, Willy-replied Nick, ending their phrase and half-smiled at him

Fortunately it was long past the student's bedtime in Haven. Nick and Will slowly snuck inside by using the keycard which allows only to enter Haven from Mistral, not enter Mistral from Haven. When they got inside, Nick saw a light in one of the rooms:

-Someone's awake?-asked Will

-It's probably Melanie and Miltia-replied Nick-let's go to my room. We'll take care of Weiss there and we're gonna discuss everything…

But it weren't the Malachite sisters who turned on the lights. No, they were professionals so they had flashlights in the room they were in. And this room, where the light was on, wasn't the place where the evidence was supposed to be found. It was the library. Inside there were no others but Yang, Ruby, Pyrrha, Nora and Blake.

They were reading some books. What was weird, they all had the same title-„The Secrets Of Gwynbleidd", written by some anonymous author. But, while they were all reading, Pyrrha suddenly closed the book and covered her face in her hands. She bursted out crying. Ruby and Blake, who were sitting next to her looked at her confused, but also quite sad. Belladonna closed her book too and moved closer to her. She embraced her and let her weep:

-Shhhhhh, everything is okay, Pyrrha. You have nothing to be scared of. We're here with you-said the brunette girl

-B…B…Blake…-mumbled Nikos, stuttering

-Shhhhhh, don't think about that now-Blake interrupted her

Pyrrha was weeping for about 8 more minutes. Blake, on the other hand, didn't seem to mind her clinging into her arm. Ruby and Nora were still looking confused and whenever they tried to say something Blake was giving them a look as if she wanted to say „shut up". Yang still had her nose in the book, not really interested in what was happening around her. She was reading a very interesting chapter when she suddenly heard Blake:

-Yang. Pyrrha has something to tell you-she said. She wasn't hugging Nikos anymore

-Hmmmmm?-The lilac eyes glanced from behind the book

-Yang…I need to tell you this, but…I am so scared of doing it…-said Pyrrha, still stuttering a bit and holding herself back from crying

Yang just raised her eyebrow. It looked as if she's not interested, but wants to hear her anyway

-Don't worry, Pyrrha-said Blake-I'm nearby

-Well…-Pyrrha was scared of the look Yang gave her. She still had doubts if she could confess that-Yang…you might not have known about this, but I broke up with Jaune…

-And?-Yang asked, interrupting her-cut to the chase

-That night…I met Nick on the corridor-Pyrrha said, slowly overcoming her fear of Yang's stare

Ruby and Nora got a little closer to hear what Pyrrha was about to say. Yang, when she heard her mentioning Nick immediately closed the book and put it on the table. She linked her hands together, and the uninterested look on her face changed into an intrigued expression:

-Go on-she said

-He was…so nice to me…he was sitting there with me…I couldn't stop myself, and…

-What she simply wants to say is that she and Nick kissed right after she broke up with Jaune-Blake interrupted her

Ruby and Nora were blown away by what they heard. They looked at each other and then kept staring at the love triangle right in front of them. Yang, on the other hand, was awkwardly silent when she heard it. For a moment Blake thought her eyes are red but with just a blink they were lilac again. She didn't seem angry, but not happy either. After a couple of minutes Yang opened her book again and got back to reading:

-Yang?-Pyrrha asked

-Shut up-she just sighed-I'm trying to read

-I…I…I'm sorry-Pyrrha said, stuttering

-Alright, stop-sighed Yang again-Let this just sink in my head, give me time…I'll think something up

At that moment Yang smiled to herself. Shivers went down Pyrrha's spine. The tense atmosphere seemed like it didn't wanna leave. But then suddenly Yang felt patting on her arm:

-Excuse me, can we sit with you?-It was Arslan and Reese. They had the same books in their hands as the rest

-Sure-Yang replied in her usual voice this time. Arslan sat down next to her, while Reese took a seat next to Nora. At this moment Pyrrha could feel that the atmosphere is now relaxed.

While this was happening, Nick and Will managed to sneak up to team ABRN's room. Nick quickly walked up to his „bed" and layed Weiss, whom he still had in his arms, under the blanket. Nadir and Bolin were sleeping and Shiko was even snoring. Nick then quickly took a random candle from a cupboard near Bolin's bed, lit it and put on the only table in the room. After that he and Will sat by the table. For a while they were staring at each other, not saying even one word. Finally, Nick sighed:

-How come? You were in the fireworks warehouse, I saw you enter it…

-This is…a long story-Will clearly didn't feel comfortable. At that moment Nick noticed some wires attached to his hands, that were coming through the gloves he had on. „What has he been through?" Van Thorne thought to himself

-Will-he said-we have all the time we need. But if you don't want to tell me then it's fine

-Then grab the popcorn and some soda because this is gonna be good-said Will

„Oh shit!"

Those were the last words William Vengh said as a full human. He saw the explosion for just a second. After that darkness overwhelmed him. Death was right there to grab him by the hand.

But then…he felt something. He felt he lives. Even though the red Dust fireworks blew up right in his face. But…why didn't this luck manifest itself with something different than unbearable pain, iron taste in mouth, utter blackness in one eye and the smell of burned Dust? Will could clearly feel it. He wanted to scream but the luck of being alive didn't let him. He was simply powerless. Nothing could have possibly lifted him up. He was stuck under the rubble, seeing nothing around except a small hole with light coming inside. He couldn't even get up, his limbs didn't let him move no matter how hard he tried to push. „Fuck you, luck" he thought to himself, breathing heavily and closed his eye. „You had to leave me alive and let me suffer more?"

But then Will heard voices coming from behind the rubble he was buried underneath. They were very loud, but just to make sure he focused his ears. „Two people. Men. They're coming in my direction". Indeed, a little later he heard them:

-Yo, bro, we haven't checked here yet, eh?

-Bitch the fuck you mean we didn't check here? Oh, right. I dunno, seems pretty shitty, if you ask me

-Ye forgot already that what looks like shit always has goods, ye fucking retard?-one of the voices replied and Will heard as he slaps the other one in the face

-Hehehe…hehehehehehehe-the slapped one laughed like an idiot-I get it, because this is shit, hehehe

-Ya really are the biggest retard-the other one replied and Will felt as the rubble is taken away slowly

-Motherfucker, don't just fucking stand there and give me a hand you piece of shit!-said the one closer to him

„Jesus, they are vulgar" Will thought

A little later the two guys uncovered Vengh lying barely alive:

-Kazik, look! A fucking corpse!-said the one whose voice Will recognized as the slapped one

-I see that, ye fucking idiot. Check his pockets already for fuck's sake

-No way, I ain't touching no corpse

-How come you are such a pussy?

„Looters. I should have seen that coming. They didn't come here to rescue survivors. They just look for garbage they can later sell and buy drugs or alcohol with. If only I could throw a punch right at those motherfuckers" Will thought. When he felt Kazik's hands rubbing his hips in search for pockets, he sighed. The looter immediately jumped back:

-God, shit, fuck, fuckedy fuck, fucking fuckery for the fucking fuck!

-What's up, bro?

-That kid…he is alive!

-Can't be. He has no legs, his eye is also out and I bet he can't walk because of that…eeeeeeeeee, how was it called, fuck….spine, yeah, spine being broken and shit

-What the fuck are we gonna do then?!

-What do you think? We put the whipster out of his fucking misery! Now you do it, 'cause I did last time

At that moment Vengh heard as one of the looters takes out a gun from the holster. At that moment he opened his eye. The one he assumed was named Kazik was standing above him with a purple revolver. Will desperately started moving his hand around the floor. When he suddenly felt a sharp shard of glass in his hand without hesitation he plunged it into the looter's leg not caring where exactly did he hit him. But he knew it must have been his weak spot because he screamed extremely loud and dropped his gun. Will picked it up and when Kazik fell on the ground Will leaned on him and aimed at the other looter. He was desperately trying to pull the gun out of his holster but Will was faster. The gun fired, the other looter dropped dead on the ground with a huge bleeding hole in his head. Kazik was still breathing, but his leg was shattered because of the glass shard. Then Will looked at him:

-A whipster, huh?-he said, breathing heavily

-P…Please…No…-the looter replied scared shitless

Will couldn't bear to look at him anymore after he was rubbing his hips trying to find his pockets. This man disgusted him in every way. So he quickly plunged his gun's barrel in his mouth, closed his eye, sighed…and pulled the trigger. Before he opened his eyes he could feel as the blood sprays on his face. After that he sighed again, dropped the gun on the ground, opened his eye and started to crawl. But no matter how much strength he found inside to kill those 2 vulgar looters, crawling out of the ruins of the fireworks warehouse turned out to be harder. Especially halfly blind, without legs and paralyzing pain in the back. Eventually William crawled out…but right after that he only managed to look at the sky once more before he passed away…

-So, you're not really alive? I'm talking to a zombie?-asked Nick

-I was dead, but I came back to life-replied Will with a half-smile

-So…you are a zombie?

-No-this time Will looked silghtly irritated

-Then what the fuck are you?

William sighed:

-I'm a cybernetic organism. Living tissue over metal endoskeleton-he said in a weird voice

-Oh…okay?-Nick was confused with what he said

-Just kidding. Endoskeletons are for weaklings. I have an exoskeleton-laughed Will and slightly took off his coat showing a huge compilation of metal wires on his back-Nick, meet Stanley

-You named…an exoskeleton? What the hell?

-Nevermind. Anything else you wanna know?

-Will…how did you survive this long?

-After I left the hospital where I got these implants I went for a little tour. I was either hunting monsters or being a journalist. They used to call me „Chopinhauer"

-YOU'RE CHOPINHAUER?!-Nick was surprised-You were writing articles about me on every front page!

-I'm sorry, but you were too big of a sensation…besides, I never knew it was you…until now of course-After that William yawned

-You must be exhausted

-Yeah. No worries, though. Wherever I will get to sleep it will be okay

At that moment the doors to the room opened slightly and Melanie and Miltiades snuck inside. Nick wasn't quick enough to notice them, because they quickly walked up to him and grabbed him by the waist, Melanie from behind, Miltia from the front:

-Girls!-Nick sounded irritated-You scared me

-Awwwww, you're so different when you're not drunk-said Melanie, hugging him tighter from behind

-I think it's time for you. You have what you want? Then please get out-Nick replied. He sounded very strict

-We'll see you later then?-Miltia asked when she let go of him. This time her smile wasn't seductive. It was more like a nice smile

-Ummmmmm…sure, just not today, okay?-Nick replied, confused about how Miltia acted. At that moment Melanie also let go of him

-Goodnight then, Nicky-giggled the more seductive Malachite sister and planted a kiss on his cheek. Right after her Miltia also kissed him on the cheek and after that both sisters left the room through the window. Nick and Will were alone again

-Ekhm…-Will grunted and grinned. His robotic eye flashed-I see you've…changed your surroundings a bit

-That's not funny-Nick blushed-all those girls…they are acting so weird. I don't understand what's so awesome about me

-Oh, I'm sure it's nothing-Will laughed-you just became better at making friends…unlike me

-You…you still remember it, don't you?

But Will didn't respond. Instead he got up from the table and blew out the candle:

-We should really go to sleep, Nick. Now that I found you, there will be trouble all over us, so we should sleep while we can-he said

-Where are you going to sleep?

-I'll sleep in the bathtub. It's the most comfortable spare place I can think of in this room. And you…well, you have a girl to take care of. You're gonna be good at that-replied Vengh, walked into the bathroom and closed the door

Nick blushed embarrassed but slowly walked up to Weiss' bed. He kneeled right before her. She was still unconscious, but she looked rather like she was sleeping.

But just when Nick was about to sneak into the bed, the door to the room opened again. Familliar to Nick figures walked in:

-I'm so worried. If he still isn't back from that mission…he might have perished-said the voice of Reese

-Calm down, Chloris-Arslan's strict voice replied-I'm sure he will handle himself just fine…wait a second

At that moment they noticed Nick by his bed. He only managed to stand up before they saw him. Reese closed the door slowly. Van Thorne suddenly then felt as he is tightly hugged by Arslan:

-Oh, you pervy little Hexman! Where have you been?-Arslan's voice wasn't strict anymore. In fact Nick had a feeling she is crying from happiness to see him

-My god, I was so worried!-Reese hugged Van Thorne from the other side. Nick couldn't feel any more awkward. He had a feeling like Will is watching him from the keyhole. After probably the longest minute ever both girls let go of him. At that moment Altan noticed Weiss in Nick's bed:

-Naughty naughty, are we?-she waved her finger and poked Nick in the nose-you're bringing girls from outside for fun and not even invite us to the party?

-Arslan, I don't think it's a common hooker-said Reese. She was examining their guest-Nick, where did you find her?

-She was…ugh I found her tied up so I took her with me. She fell asleep while we were going here

-Arslan, look! Don't you recognize her?-Reese said and Arslan ducked next to her

-Is that…the icy bitch from the tournament, Weiss Schnee?

-Yeah it really is. Looks like Nick saved a damsel in distress-said Reese and grinned with Arslan at the Hexman

-Ugh, I wouldn't quite put it that way, but it's true-said Nick and blushed embarassed

-Hey if you don't wanna claim your prize for saving the princess then why not sleep with us?-Reese suddenly said

-You realise this doesn't make any sense?-said Nick

-Besides can't you see how big of a pervert he is, Chloris?-asked Arslan

-Hey, you had a towel! I didn't see you showering-Nick almost cried

-Did I say I'm not okay with that?-Arslan said seductively

-Oh…uh…huh huh…well, it's up to you then-said Nick and blushed again

-Alright, we're sleeping in three then-laughed Reese-Nick in the middle, I will go to the right, Arslan to the left. We're gonna use my bed because it's the most comfortable one

And so it happened. The 3 of them somehow managed to get inside the bed, which was extremely tight. But Nick had other problems. First Arslan was pressing her chest against him, second Reese was pressing her butt against him, third (and that problem was troubling Nick mostly)…his underwear started to be too tight. But, as we all know, it wasn't because they didn't fit him, but simply because…something was rising in it. Nick was so embarrassed he was glad he couldn't sweat or have fart problems. At one point he even thought he can hear Will giggling in the toilet, still staring through the keyhole. „I will turn you into a pirate if you're looking through it" Van Thorne thought. Eventually, even though his one hand landed between Arslan's breasts and the other hand landed awkwardly underneath Reese's left buttock, he managed to force himself to fall asleep. At one point he even got comfortable with that.

Weiss was the first one to wake up. About 3 hours after Nick fell asleep she opened her eyes. She was desoriented, had no idea where she is. She wanted to find Will and this time kill him. She was desperately looking around the room, trying to find any source of light. Then she took out her rapier, Myrtenaster, and set it to yellow dust. After activating it, the blade gave her a small spark of light with which she managed to look around…and notice team ABRN, all sleeping. She recognized them easily. After all she was the one who froze Nadir's legs. That's how she recognized her surroundings. Then she saw Nick. At first she wanted to get up and started to jump on him, but later she realised something. „I'm completely fine. He must have brought me here. He didn't even try to undress me. Great, now he saved me 2 times. I guess I can be grateful…for now" and with that thought she switched Myrtenaster off, sheathed it, covered herself with the blanket and fell asleep again.

Will barely slept. He finally managed to fall asleep at 4 a.m and when he woke up it was 8 a.m. He slowly snuck out of the room and ran down the corridor. He couldn't suspect that he isn't the only one awake.

Suddenly he bumped into someone. He hit the ground painfully:

-Watch where the fuck you're going!-he yelled

-Whipster, don't try to jump at me, okay?-Qrow's voice could be heard. It was him who Will bumped into

-Did you just call me…-Vengh paused for a second-a whipster? Hehehehehe…you just sealed your doom!

William jumped from the ground and took out his staff. He then pressed a button on it and the orange gem left it, the eagle-like claws started to move and the entire structure became longer and more flexible. Will started to swing it around, laughing like a maniac:

-Jesus, what the hell is that?-Said Qrow disgusted when he was drawing his huge sword

-The latest trend in Atlesian weapon stores, at your service!-said Will-it's a whip, grappling hook and also a taser, all on a beautiful metal chain hidden in a staff

-Alright-Qrow seemed totally confused-I don't know why a kid wants to fight me but if you're looking for a practice before your combat classes then I'm all in!

Will jumped at Qrow, anger escalating inside him. Qrow's sword swung just above his head. It barely missed his hat. When Branwen thought that the duel is already over Vengh dashed towards him and kicked him straight in the face. He hit the nose, which seemed to anger Qrow very much:

-That…was pretty mean-he said and grinned at his opponent. After that Will started to swing his chain around, but Qrow was dodging it while being closer and closer to him. When he was right in front of Vengh he drew his sword and was about to slash William with it, then the cyborg got mad:

-Incinerate!-he screamed and a stream of blue light left his cybernetic eye. Qrow jumped to the side, barely dodging the laser

-What the hell are you doing? Launching a semblance from your eye? This can kill you!-Qrow yelled, confused

-This is no semblance-said William and poked his cybernetic eye. It let out a metallic sound-This is called high-tech

-What the hell? Who…What are you?!-Qrow was already sure that weird man wasn't a student of Haven

-Glad you corrected your mistake, mr…-Will said while his chain was turning back into a staff

-Qrow Branwen-he replied and hid his sword-and you are…

-William Vengh

-You…you're not from around here, are you?

-I'm from very far if that's what you're asking

-Really? Where from?

-The morgue

-Hahahahahahahah…you're a funny one, 'twas my mistake to attack you-said Qrow, but Will seemed serious. Branwen however didn't bother taking his reaction seriously-anyway…Will…Where are you going so early?

-I came here to visit a friend. Now I'm going to go back to business

-A friend, huh?-asked Qrow. His eyes cunningly glanced at the cyborg-could that friend be…Nicholas FUCKING VAN THORNE?!

-How…how do you know?-Will was in shock. His mask of a mysterious stranger wore off instantly

-I saw you yesterday. You and that bastard were talking in his room. I was watching from behind the window

-But…I didn't see anyone there

-Really? Not even a bird?

Will then realised he heard a bird cawing yesterday. His eyes went wide:

-You…

-Yes, this is me. Pretty good semblance to stalk people. Not that I'm a stalker myself. I'm just a bit…nosy

„Filthy spy" Will thought to himself:

-So…are you going to tell me what is Nick up to?

-I have no idea. We haven't seen each other for quite a while. Why are you asking?

-I wanna prove he is a seducer and that he treats girls like crap so that he breaks up with my niece

-Mr. Branwen, you have the worst possible impression on this-Will then walked up to Qrow, leaning a bit on his staff-I've known Nick since we were very little kids. We were like brothers. He never let me down. I remember, back at home, how his relationships with girls looked like. They were all jumping at him at the same time, always confident, always with flattering words and compliments. I know many guys might dream of it, but to Nick it was happening way too often. Everytime a girl was approaching him, he was getting nervous, blushing, stuttering, even sometimes crying a little bit. He never overcame his shyness…until now apparently. You're saying that he and your niece are a couple. I say let them be. Because if he treated friendship with me like the biggest treasure then I can't possibly imagine how he would cherish a relationship like the one he has with your niece

-Wow…I…I never imagined that something like that would happen to him…this would be awesome if I was him

-But you're not

-You're right…I guess I owe him an apology…I hope you're not bullshitting me

-Mr. Branwen I am a cyborg who despises some of human emotions, but I can tell the difference between them-Will then paused for a second and mumbled to himself-damn, all these girls lean on him and I don't even have enough Liens for a hooker

-Please call me Qrow. You know, Will? I think it's better if we discuss this further later. You're a fascinating kid. I'll spare you couch in my room and there we get to know each other better

-Eheheh…Qrow, but…I'm not into that kink, you know?

-What kink?-Qrow sounded confused. After a second he realised what Will meant and got red from anger-OH YOU FUCKING IDIOT! I wasn't talking about THAT! What do you think, I'm some kind of pedophile? Just go to my room and wait for me there. Don't ever bring that up again!

And then Qrow gave Will keys to his room and walked away, still red from anger.

Meanwhile, Nick managed to wake up. He opened his eyes. He still was in the middle of the bed, with Arslan and Reese clinging into him. But there was something far more weird happening right now:

-Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeh?!-Van Thorne heard a loud squeal in front of his bed. It was Nadir. He and Bolin were already awake, dressed in pajamas

-Hmpf…what time is it?-Nick asked still unable to get up

-You…you dare ask that?! Better look around you! What the hell are you doing in the same bed with our leader and her assistant?!

-9 o'clock-said Bolin calmly, ignoring Nadir's outburst

-Bolin! Why are you telling him?! Aren't you offended that there was probably a threesome right next to you and you couldn't sleep or be invited?!

-The only reason why I couldn't sleep was because you were snoring-Bolin replied-Those three were behaving themselves very well. And I wouldn't wanna be invited, it's just not for me

-I AM SNORING?!

-Could you shut up?-mumbled Nick-I had a rough night so I'd appreciate if you would get out

-Yeah we will, just one last question-said Bolin and pointed at Nick's bed-what is Weiss doing in your bed?

-What do you mean what? He probably first did her and now he switched to our girls-said Nadir and snickered-am I right, Nick?

-No-Van Thorne replied-now can you please get out?

-Nadir, let's not make him angry today, okay? Guy had a tough mission to do and I guess he needs to take some rest-said Bolin as he was dragging Nadir with him out of the room after they changed clothes

Nick then decided to take a little nap, but he couldn't fall asleep. Arslan and Reese started to wake up. He could feel as they crawl in the bed, stretching a bit before finally opening their eyes. Nick tried to take his hands away from Arslan's cleavage and Reese's butt but it was too late. When they opened their eyes, they were still clinging to Van Thorne:

-Awwwwww…you already woke up?-said Arslan

-Hey boss-giggled Reese-remember how you were whining why does no one appreciate your boobs? Well now you have a perfect example that someone does

Then Arslan looked down and saw Nick's hand on her breast. Her face turned red and at first she cracked a half-smile but after that she changed her expression to embarrassment:

-That's true, but…but…I never would expect that to be him-Arslan was obviously lying. That's exactly who she expected to be. After that the leader of team ABRN noticed Reese being in a simillar position she is-hey, no one appreciated that bum bum of yours for a long time too, Reese

-What? What are you…-Chloris then noticed what she meant-oh…so this is why I was so comfortable

-Ugh…fucken…shit-said Nick and forced his hands out of where they were-I'm done sleeping

Nick jumped out of the bed and walked up to the bathroom door:

-Will?-he said while knocking-You still there?

No answer. Nick slowly opened the door. Of course the bathtub was empty. „So…he woke up earlier. Like he always does" Nick thought to himself while he was washing his face by the sink. After thinking for a little he decided to wash his hair too. He bent over the bathtub and quickly soaked his hair in water. Then he took the random shampoo there was nearby and rubbed his long, dark brown hair until the foam was thick enough. He then washed the shampoo off, took the nearby towel and washed his whole head with it. After that he left the bathroom:

-Okay, I'm done. You might wanna get up too-he said

-Awwwwwww-said Reese

-5 more minutes-said Arslan

-Fine, but I'll mark that you're not present on the next Grimmistics

-Oh no! They are today?! Reese come on get up

And both Altan and Chloris jumped out of the bed and ran to the bathroom. Meanwhile Nick dressed back up. He put his army pants on, adjusted the belt as he wanted, put the sweater and the coat back on, buttoned them up, put on the gloves, hid the bandana and the sunglasses in his pockets. He took the hat from the hook in the room and put it on too. When he did that, he heard movements behind him. Weiss woke up:

-Ummmmmmm…hey-he heard her mumbling

-Hey…

-W…Where am I?

-You're safe. I brought you to Haven, to team ABRN's room. Nothing happened to you. Will drugged you with chloroform, so you fell asleep

Nick turned around. Weiss was sitting on his bed, looking at him with sleepy eyes. She didn't seem like she was about to start a fight. Van Thorne sat near her:

-Nick, was it?-Weiss said-I…I think I owe you an apology

-You don't owe me anything-said Nick and smiled at her-you were protecting yourself. I can't blame you for being suspicious

Weiss blushed.

-You're…not as bad as I first thought you were-she said

-You don't know me that well yet. Are you…feeling alright?

-I'm fine…though these past 2 months spent on spying on Vengh without properly sleeping did their job

-Maybe you should rest here while you can. You don't need to attend classes yet

-What classes?

-I'm teaching those kids further about Grimm. Anatomy, how to kill easily, evolution, history

-Maybe you could lecture me about this too?

-What? Here? Don't you think you're a bit too tired to study?

-Hon, I am a Schnee, we've always been showing off our intelligence too much. Learning more won't hurt me

-Weiss…-Nick blushed-please, don't call me that, can you?

-I'm sorry

-WHAT THE FUCK?!-Suddenly Nick heard Arslan's angry yell from the bathroom. She kicked opened the door. Her hair was wet. She had a bottle of shampoo in her hands-Nick, were you using MY shampoo?!

-Ummmmmm…yeah? So what?

-YOU EMPTIED THE WHOLE BOTTLE!

-Oh…so that one was yours? Shit…

-I'm gonna use Reese's hair conditioner now but you will buy me next bottle!

-How much it costs?

-80 Liens-said Altan and then noticed Weiss-good morning, Schnee

-Altan-replied the other girl politely

After that Arslan closed the door to the bathroom. A little later Nick heard Reese giggling and Arslan mumbling in anger

-You know, if you emptied my bottle of hair conditioner which costed me 1000 Liens then I would probably kill you-said Weiss after a while

-You didn't try that yesterday?

-Maybe I did

At that moment Reese and Arslan left the room, fully dressed up. Nick said goodbye to Weiss and left the room with his two roommates. On the corridor he saw Qrow waiting for him:

-Maybe you wait for me in the classroom, okay?-he said to the two girls. They nodded and ran down the corridor. After they disappeared Nick slowly walked up to Qrow

-Don't be afraid-he said

-It's not fear, Branwen. I'm just curious what do you want

-Saw your little friend earlier this morning. He was…very helpful

-What did you do to him?!-Nick yelled in anger

-Hey hey hey. Relax-Qrow replied and raised his hands a little-I didn't do anything to him. Just…after what he told me…I wanna say I'm sorry. I was an asshole back then on the ship and…I understand if you're still salty about back then in your hometown

-Whoa…-Nick was blown away-The great Qrow Branwen actually apologizes for something?

-I'm just admitting I was wrong, there is nothing special in it

At that moment the bell rang. Nick started to walk away:

-I appreciate that, Qrow-he said before disappearing-I really do

After a while the next lesson about the Grimmistics started. Everyone was present. Nick was at first rolling his eyes around the classroom, trying to catch students' attention. After he made sure they are ready he just smiled and said:

-You didn't expect to see me again, did you? Well, your headmistress didn't fire me so I will still teach you. Anyway, people. Last time we talked about Grimm in general. Who, or rather what Grimm is, where do they come from and stuff like that. Today we are starting our first chapter of learning about Grimm species. Some of those may be a revision for you but I'm hoping you won't fall asleep. Anyway, our topic today are Creeps, the weakest Grimm possible. But, seeing as you all are pretty young and mostly unexperienced, I'm gonna need to tell you how to easily kill a Creep. You see, Creeps are…something like a dinosaur. A combination of a reptile and a bird…

Nick was lecturing until the bell rang. When most of the students left the classroom, he was approached by someone. It was Pyrrha:

-Hey, Nick…got a minute?-she asked

-Sure, what's up?

But Nikos didn't say anything. She only dragged Nick by the hand to the side of the corridor and placed his hands on her hips:

-Can we…repeat that thing from 2 days ago? I missed you

-I missed you too-said Nick and kissed Pyrrha. He couldn't have known, that they are being watched

A couple of steps farther Jonas Mikaelsen was spying on Nick. He was looking from behind a pillar, smiling to himself the whole time. „He doesn't know. He doesn't know" he was repeating in his thoughts. Suddenly Mikaelsen's Scroll started to vibrate. He quickly picked it up:

-Yes?-he asked

-Is the suspect still in motion?-slowly said a distorted voice from the Scroll

-Yes, but I think he won't be a problem for us

-Good, good…but I still want you to observe him-said the voice and hung up

Nick and Pyrrha were making out for a pretty long time. Later that day Nick had even more Grimmistics classes to teach. He taught the kids about Beowolves, Griffons and lots of other species. Around the evening he was by the gate to Mistral taking a walk when suddenly he heard someone whispering to him:

-Nick…Nick…Nick!

Van Thorne looked around. He couldn't see whose voice was:

-Over here!

Nick then looked up. Roman Torchwick was climbing down the ladder from the separating wall. When he got down, he quickly walked up to him:

-Are you stupid? If someone sees you here…

-Don't worry, Nick. I'll only take a minute. Melanie and Miltia insisted after they decoded the intel they gathered from here

-Well…what did they find?

-Confirmation that the one Junior accused is guilty. The Malachite ladies insisted that I tell you who is that

-Finally. Who is that?-asked Nick and looked to the side for a second

-Well, the guy who is responsible for Junior's inconvenience is…

-Mikaelsen-Nick suddenly interrupted him

-What? How do you know?

-No, look! Mikaelsen! He's there, staring at us

-What?! Where?!

Roman and Nick looked at the same direction. The one they mentioned really was observing them from behind the pillar. They were staring at him for a while until Mikaelsen finally realised what happened and ran away. Torchwick and Van Thorne ran after him, but they only managed to get to the courtyard. Right after that an annoying sound could be heard in the whole Haven. The lights went out, corridors were brightened only by big red lights which were letting out this noise:

-Alert! Grimm outbreak in school. Alert! Grimm outbreak in school-a computer voice could be heard

-Oh, shit! He sounded the alarm-said Torchwick-I need to inform Junior. You try to find Mikaelsen

Nick and Roman split up. The Hexman was running down the corridor, coming through students who were in total panic. He suddenly heard someone calling him. It was Sun and his team. They were all standing by their room with their weapons drawn:

-What the hell is going on?!-yelled Neptune

-Mikaelsen sounded the alarm

-What?! But why?!-yelled Sun

-Long story-Nick replied-come on, we need to find the others

It didn't take long for Nick and team SSSN to get to ABRN's room. When Nick got inside, however, Weiss wasn't in bed and Nadir was about to leave:

-Shit, Nick! You scared me!

-Where's Weiss?!

-Well, she was weak so professor Mikaelsen took her to the hospital

Nick's blood started to boil form anger. He grabbed Nadir by the jacket:

-AND YOU DIDN'T STOP HIM?!

-Why would I?-Shiko completely didn't understand why Van Thorne was so angry

-Nevermind. Guys, we gotta go-he said, let go of Nadir and ran out of the room with team SSSN

-Hey, where are you going? Hey, wait for me!-screamed Shiko and ran after them with his gun in his hands

Eventually the team found the rest of ABRN. Arslan, Reese and Bolin were trying to get to one of the rooms:

-Nick! Professor Tromberg got locked up here! We gotta get her out-screamed Bolin

-This is pointless-said Qrow, who suddenly caught up with the rest-the doors are completely sealed. Whoever sounded the alarm he knew what he's doing. Helga is locked in the chemistry classroom. Very likely she will get poisoned from the stuff that comes from gas burners

-Mr. Branwen!-Arslan was surprised

-What do you mean the gas burners are on?-Nick asked

-Whenever the Grimm outbreak happens in Haven, the gas burners are automatically turned on so that if a Grimm happens to be in the chemistry classroom he dies from carbon monoxide poisoning

-Well…how do we open this door then?-asked Reese

-There's only one way. We need to get to the master control panel in Tromberg's office

-Help!-a scream could be heard from inside the classroom

-We're coming Helga! Just hold on there!-said Qrow-that bastard Mikaelsen is in her office. He holds one of ours hostage. We gotta hurry

Nadir felt very bad. He could feel as Nick's eyes pierce him with anger at that moment. But shortly after that he caught up with the rest on the corridor. Eventually Nick bumped into Yang:

-Oh my god, Nick!-she said and hugged him tightly. Tears were forming in her eyes

Ruby, Jaune, Pyrrha, Nora, Blake and Ren were with her. Nick suddenly felt better. Like he will succeed. After a while Yang let him go and the whole team ran down the corridor straight to the headmistress' office. When they finally got there, Roman was waiting by the door:

-Open the door, Mikaelsen! You're exposed, you will not escape anymore-he yelled

-Fuck you!-a voice from inside the office could be heard. For a second Nick thought it was someone else, but eventually he realised that it's just Mikaelsen without the mask of a calm assistant

-Ruby, are my eyes deceiving me or is that…-Blake whispered to the silver-eyed girl

-Torchwick!-Ruby yelled. She clearly was pissed off

Roman turned around, and when he saw Ruby he grinned widely:

-Well, Red, isn't it nice to see you again…

-You bastard still breathe?!-yelled Blake suddenly and jumped with Ruby straight at Roman. He tried to cover himself with his cane but suddenly Qrow stopped the two girls right before him

-You will deal your personal issues with him later. Right now it's Mikaelsen who is our top priority-said Ruby's uncle

-Thank you!-said Roman with a sarcasm from behind Branwen. When Ruby and Blake looked at him with anger, he sticked out his tongue at them

-Anyway, Torchwick-Nick bumped into the conversation-you found a way to get in?

-I barely started. All this time I was trying to call for back up-replied Roman

-Then stand back everyone-Nick added-it's gonna get messy

Yang and Pyrrha giggled a little, having dirty thoughts in their heads. Nick then snapped his fingers and his hand bursted in the flames of Igni. He pointed it forward at the door. Everyone was watching in shock, as one of Nick's semblances was melting the door like chocolate. After a while Van Thorne stopped:

-Now Roman, give me your cane

He took Roman's staff and aimed it at the melted door to Tromberg's office. It fired an exploding bullet right at it, blasting it to bits. The doors were destroyed. Nick was clear to enter:

-How did you…-Roman said

-Your cane wouldn't have its edge painted and thickened without purpose. I knew you use it as a weapon. Simply because you don't have anything else that could either hurt or shoot…well, maybe except the hat but who the fuck kills with a hat these days?

-Actually…-Ren tried to say something

-Shut up, Ren!-Nick immediately silenced him, not even looking at him while he was giving Roman back the cane-alright, I'm going in there

Nick slowly entered Tromberg's office through the hole he made with Roman's cane. Inside, everything was in order, nothing was destroyed. It looked like it's peaceful inside…until from behind the desk two figures walked out. Mikaelsen was holding Weiss by the neck and was aiming at her head with some gun Nick didn't recognize…at first. When he realized the fact, he quickly drew his golden gun and aimed it right at Mikaelsen:

-I would suggest you don't do anything unreasonable, Van Thorne. I will pull the trigger and blow her mind, if you know what I mean. I can do that in a heartbeat-said the headmistress' assistant

-Nice pun. You stole it from Yang?-Nick replied with a sarcasm

-Shut the fuck up!-Jonas yelled and pressed the gun's barrel harder at Weiss' temple-I know what you're thinking, but it wasn't me!

-Then why do you have the same gun?

-They equip all of us with one of those. Now listen carefully and no one gets hurt. I'm gonna walk out of Haven, unharmed, and you're gonna help me. In exchange, I'll let you decide about this little birdie's fate

-I'm not dealing with you. You're one of them. I must put you down, Mikaelsen

-Oh, come on, Nicky. You know that deep down you want to put a bullet in a Schnee. I'm giving you this opportunity, because I believe we can…forget about the past. And also, you don't look as dumb as your so-called "brothers and sisters"

-No, we can't forget about the past. Not after what YOUR people did-Nick said and tightened the grip on his gun's handle-Jonas Mikaelsen, in the name of my father, me, my mother and the whole Brotherhood, by the principal of the fox's court I, Nicholas Van Thorne, sentence you to death

Mikaelsen sighed:

-You disappoint me, Nick. I thought we can find a compromise. But I see that none of you has even a small bit of brain!

Nick then saw movements behind the window in the office. He recognized the figures. It was Junior, Melanie and Miltia. Roman managed to call them here. But it seemed as Mikaelsen also noticed that Van Thorne's sight is focused on something else:

-Ha! You're now avoiding my sight, thinking I'll turn around and you'll put a bullet in me. Well guess what, Van Thorne? I'm too old and too smart to fall for that shit!

All that time Weiss was held by her neck. She could barely breathe, Mikaelsen's revolver started to hurt her. She completely didn't understand what is happening and was getting more and more scared because of that. Tears slowly started to form in her eyes:

-You're making a girl cry, Jonas-said Nick-at least let her go. I don't feel like hurting a girl today

-It's not funny!-Weiss cried

At that moment the glass window broke. Mikaelsen completely panicked. He let go of Weiss but pushed her while doing so. She hit the wall and then the ground. Nick immediately jumped to her:

-You're okay?-he asked

-I'll be fine, I just…need a minute

At that moment Nick looked back at Mikaelsen. Right in front of him stood Junior and the Malachite sisters. Miltia had long red and black double claws in her hands, Melanie's heels seemed longer and sharper and Junior held a big baseball bat in his hand. While Mikaelsen was slowly recovering from shock, Xiong brushed off the glass shards he still had on his vest:

-Well, well-said Mikaelsen when he finally calmed down-so this is why you're hunting me, Nick? You're working for him now? How many Liens did he offer you? 5000? 8000? I can do twice that amount, I have connections

-Connections? You stole all the money from Haven's safe when no one was looking and accused me! I had to hide for over 14 years, but the Grimm outbreak in Vale opened my eyes. Vengeance is gonna taste sweet

-None of you will take me alive!-Mikaelsen screamed and his aura suddenly started to glow green

-Shit! Nick, get down!-Junior screamed

Shards of broken glass started to lift up and point right at Junior. Jonas made one gesture and the shards shot straight at Xiong, ready to severely cut him. But then his baseball bat transformed into something else and suddenly he fired a few mini rockets from it, which completely deflected the glass shard making a little explosion. Then Militia and Melanie dashed forward and started to kick and punch Mikaelsen, while he was dodging and trying to throw something at the girls. While this was happening, Jonas started to lift up slowly from the floor and the Malachite sisters couldn't hit him after a while. Mikaelsen was too high in the air. Junior then fired more rockets at him. Mikaelsen just moved his hand a little and the rockets changed their direction and started to fly back at Xiong. Nick then made one big jump, snapped his fingers and surrounded himself and Junior with the force field. The rockets blew up, leaving both the Hexman and Hei unharmed:

-That was pretty brave, Nick. For a Hexman you're really impressive. I'm sorry I have to put you down-said Mikaelsen and smiled sneeringly to himself-but before I end you, let me take care of the one you thought you could protect!

Jonas then raised his hand, lifting Weiss in the air. She was extremely scared, Nick could clearly see that:

-Hahahahahaha! I'm gonna enjoy crushing her bones on the walls just by moving my hand a little! Mwahahahahahahahahaha!-Mikaelsen said and laughed maniacally

Nick's hate for Tromberg's assistant grew to the maximum. He drew one of his guns and immediately fired it right at Mikaelsen. Of course, he stopped the bullet right before him:

-Hahahahahahaha, you fool! You really thought you could harm me, the great Jonas Nils Mikaelsen, with such a peashooter? Pathetic!

-You can stop laughing now-said Nick and smiled at his enemy with a derisive look

-What?! You dare underestimate me?! Stupid! I could throw you through the window and I wouldn't even have to blink

-Oh? Did you just say you could do that?

-Nick, don't provoke him. He has gone mad now. If you keep doing that he will tear this room apart-Junior said

-Shut up! You're damn annoying!-yelled Nick at Xiong. It was so sudden he and Malachite sisters shivered for a second. But immediately after that he winked at them, confusing them a little bit

-Ah, so you are losing your temper?-said Mikaelsen and laughed

-Oh? Did you just say that?

-Yes, I did! Stop acting retarded, Nick, I'm not falling for that!

-Oh? So now you're the one losing your temper?

-Don't mock me, you ugly prick! I will kill you!

-Is that so? Fine, try it

-Eh? Didn't you just hear me?!

-Look beneath yourself-said Nick and pointed his finger on the ground

-Fool! You think I'll fall for that too?

-Fine then…

Mikaelsen was about to throw something at Van Thorne when he suddenly felt as his hand starts moving slower and slower…and finally stops. Same thing with his other hand. His legs stopped moving either. He was being pulled to the ground:

-Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?!

-Hmpf…you didn't notice that, did you? I've put Yrden runes on the ground while I was about to cover Junior. You were focused too much on the Malachite girls and mocking how they couldn't catch you while you were in the air. While in one hand I prepared the force field Quen, the other one managed to synchronize with it and plant Yrden on the ground while I was dashing at Junior. You were already doomed and didn't know it

-I…I…Impossible!-yelled Mikaelsen, already on the ground. Yrden's symbols flashed around him

-Good grief, Mikaelsen. I've already dealt with psychic semblances before. This power mostly focuses on concentration, and telekinesis users such as you are very good at that. That kind of means you can't stop them from concentrating. However…-at that moment Van Thorne paused, corrected his hat a little bit and slowly walked up to unable to move Mikaelsen, who was grinding his teeth in anger-there is one way…for every psychic to lose concentration!

At that moment Nick clenched his fist and threw a quick punch right at Jonas' cheek. The punch was so hard, some of Mikaelsen's teeth went flying and the brads on his glove made him bleed even more. At that moment the green glowing aura disappeared and Weiss landed back on the floor:

-Here you meet your end, Jonas Nils Mikaelsen-said Van Thorne and corrected his glove

-Please forgive me!-Tromberg's assistant cried

-Only Junior can. I have no intention of doing that in the first place. You are a scum I can't stand. We shall see if your former friend will let you pay your debt with money

Nick then walked away from Mikaelsen. He approached Junior slowly, taking his eyes off the opponent:

-What do you wanna do with him?-Nick asked

But then he heard clicking sound right behind him:

-Nick! Hahahahahaha! You thought I will give up so easily? Lahilla never admits defeat, neither will I!-said Mikaelsen. A smile came back on his face. He then pulled the trigger, but the gun didn't fire-Eh? What the hell?

-He should die-said Junior out of the blue

-AAAAAAAAAAGH!-Mikaelsen suddenly screamed and his shirt suddenly became red. A small blade was sticking out from where his lungs are. He dropped the gun and then the blade disappeared. Mikaelsen hit the ground. It was Weiss. She stabbed him from behind. After that Nick quickly ran up to the barely breathing Mikaelsen, stomped on his ribs, took out his gun and aimed it at his forehead:

-Here's your bill-he said and pulled the trigger. The gun fired, this time blasting Mikaelsen's head to smithereens. The blood sprayed a little bit on his coat.

Jonas Nils Mikaelsen, Lahilla's agent working undercover as headmistress' assistant in Haven, Mistral, responsible for big theft, false accusations, financing and profiting from his organisation's operations, destruction of school property, holding hostage and attempted murder of Weiss Schnee, attempted murder of Nicholas Van Thorne, Hei Xiong, Helga Tromberg and Melanie and Miltiades Malachite…perished!

Nick slowly walked up to Weiss. She was cleaning the blood off Myrtenaster with her hand. She really looked disgusted:

-Let me do that-he said and washed the blood off Weiss' rapier quickly with his coat. After that he gave it back-I could have done it myself, you know?

-Yeah, sure you could-said Weiss, sheathed her blade and smiled-but you were taking too long

At that moment all Nick's companions were walking into Tromberg's office. Junior quickly accessed the master controls panel and opened the door to the chemistry classroom. Qrow heard that and ran off to help the headmistress, while the rest were coming inside:

-Weiss?!-Ruby suddenly squeaked

-Ruby?!-Weiss squeaked too

In a blink of an eye the girl with silver eyes tackled the Schnee to the ground, squeezing her in a hug. In the meantime, the rest came inside:

-I thought I knew who he was. I thought we all did-said Sun, standing with his teammates and team ABRN near Mikaelsen's corpse

-Heeeey, Junior! It's been a while, wasn't it?-Yang suddenly said, seeing Xiong again

-Blondie?-Hei was confused. Melanie and Miltia standing behind him just sighed

-Good job, Nick. You really did what was right-said Ren and patted Van Thorne on the arm

-Why did you tell others about Tromberg's job?-Nick said. He was disappointed at the man he thought he can trust

-Jaune insisted. And when I told him, he spread the news everywhere. I…I hope one day you'll forgive me. I hope you understand. I just wanted him to fuck off-said Ren, clearly sad that he let down his friend

-Hey, Nick!-The Hexman suddenly saw another one of his friends, suddenly hanging from the ceiling right in front of him-I watched that duel with the bad guy, you were so awesome!

-Thanks, Nora-Nick replied and smiled awkwardly

Right after that Nora raised her finger and poked his nose:

-Boop-she said, smiled, jumped down and ran off to Ren, who was examining Mikaelsen's corpse

Jaune was walking around, not really doing anything, Pyrrha tried to place some decorations Mikaelsen fell over back where they belong and Blake was talking to Roman. Their conversation was clearly more peaceful now than when it was by the door.

After a little while Qrow came back. He had Tromberg in his hands. Someone else was with him. It was William. Nick immediately got angry, ran up to him and grabbed him by the coat:

-WHERE THE FUCK HAVE YOU BEEN?!-he yelled

-Nick, relax, one of his legs was malfunctioning. He was repairing it at my room-said Qrow

-I'm really sorry, Nick-said Will

Van Thorne let his friend go and apologized for bursting out with anger so much. Qrow then put Tromberg on the desk. She was barely conscious, but when she saw Junior right next to her, staring at her, she got a little bit more alive:

-What are you…-she tried to say

-Shhhhhhh, it's alright, boss. You're safe. By Maidens, you haven't aged at all

-Hei…I'm so sorry…for all the pain…I caused-said Tromberg, gasping. She still had to rebalance her breath

-Shhhhhhhhh, don't think about that now. Relax. Besides, it wasn't your fault-said Junior, caressed her on the head and turned back to Roman-you know what that means, right?

-Nope, I forgot-replied Torchwick with a sarcasm-Of course I do, dude. Don't worry, we should unlock the district gates in no time, just need to call the right person

And so, that's how the southern district of Mistral, where the riots divided citizens and turned everything into a civil war, started to shine back again. "Dante Will Cry" still works, still only at night, but also with other clubs. People walk outside again in southern Mistral. Henchmen, who were making them scared, now are extremely nice. But even though southern Mistral was happy again, the rest of the town still remained divided in riots. Western district still protests, eastern district held hostage entirely…and northern district, completely isolated.

All our heroes slept well for a couple of days. It seemed like life has returned to its routine circle. Nick was still teaching Grimmistics, maybe this time with a more expanded class. After classes he was always meeting up with his friends, hanging out and generally having good time. Ruby and Blake mended their ways with Torchwick, but Roman decided to not visit Haven too often now. Same thing went for Junior and Malachite sisters, who were all busy with the club. Will stayed at Qrow's room, while Branwen himself even started to come to Nick's lessons. Tromberg's office was rebuilt back to how it looked like before Mikaelsen sounded the alarm and she herself enjoyed her life as a headmistress, even though she now had more duties without her assistant. Everything was back to normal in Haven. Until one day when Tromberg was checking her e-mail box. Seeing a certain message made her spit her hot coffee everywhere. When she cleaned it up she immediately called Nick and Will into her room. When they arrived she covered her face in her hands:

-I don't even know how to put in words how bad news I've just received

-What's wrong, Helga?-asked Will. He already started to call her by the name after he got to know her better

-Someone…someone alerted Atlas! They are sending military to us for protection. You can probably guess who will lead them. This doesn't mean they will protect us, more like the opposite-said Tromberg

-Hm? Who is it?-Asked Nick, even though he was already getting an idea about who it might be

-Winter Schnee and her father, Harland

-WHAT?!-William's human eye almost popped out of the socket. Then both Van Thorne and Vengh realized who was that

-WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIISSSSSSSSSSSS!-they both screamed as loud as they could in anger


	10. Western madness

-Have you lost your mind?!-Nick was yelling when Weiss admitted a little later that she indeed called her sister

-This is bad-Will was scared-really bad. If Schnee comes here…

-You'll finally get what you deserve!-Weiss laughed

-Shut your fucking mouth, you stupid bitch!-Will screamed at her and was about to slap her in the face but Nick caught his hand on time

-Willy, don't. It will only make your situation worse. As if Schnee wasn't already after you because of this accident in the shanty

-Yeah, but do you understand that it's not because of Weiss that he wants to kill me?

-What? Then why is he onto you?

-Ehhhhhhh…

-Come on, tell him-Weiss said-you're his friend after all

-He won't forgive me for losing Stephen!

-What Stephen? What the hell are you talking about?-Nick was very confused

Weiss bursted out laughing. Will was clearly scared and looked like he is about to cry. Nick then patted him on the arm:

-What happened to him?

-They took him. I know they did. He's locked up somewhere in the eastern district but I have no idea where. And I can't send anyone there, it's too dangerous

-I'll find him. You have my word-Nick quickly said and turned back to Weiss-What's so funny?

But Weiss couldn't stop laughing. She already fell from her chair because of that. Nick then came up with an idea. He ducked right before her and started to tickle her hips. She then laughed so loud, Will thought for a second that everyone hears it from his and Qrow's room. Nick relentlessly tickled her, until she finally lost strength to laugh:

-No, no, stop! I can't anymore! Heheheheheheh…-she said, gasping

-You calmed down finally? Good. Go back to your room

Weiss got up from the floor and left Will's room. After Mikaelsen's death and Weiss' reunion with Ruby (who turned out to be old teammates and friends) she moved to the room which she shared with Ruby, Blake, Yang, Jaune, Nora, Pyrrha and Ren. Their room was always looking like it was infinite and lots of people could be stuffed there. But it didn't matter for Nick. He still preffered his small room he shared with team ABRN. They actually got rid of his previous bed and now every night Nick is forced to sleep with Arslan and Reese in one bed. Somehow with that the room got even smaller to Nick. But it didn't matter. He didn't need too much sleep, unlike other people. Not to mention Will, who practically doesn't need to sleep and only takes a nap when he wants to.

After a while Nick finished talking to his friend and left the room. He now had a new mission in mind, which was finding that Stephen Will kept on mentioning. He was walking down a corridor, but didn't go to his room. Instead, he went to Yang's room.

-Hey, Nick-she welcomed him, as always, very cheerfully. She was sitting on her bed, typing something on her Scroll

But Nick didn't say anything. He just sat down next to her and took her by the hand. For a while he was just looking at her and later he slowly laid down on her lap. Yang then got worried and started to caress him on the head:

-What's wrong? You seem like you got some really bad news-she asked

-That's…-Van Thorne was just about to say what he wanted but bit his tongue-nah, it's nothing

-Oh-Yang then cheered up a bit-so you just felt bad and came to cuddle?

-Mhm-Nick mumbled in response and looked her in the eyes

-You have such pretty eyes-Yang said-maybe they are the reason I love you so much

-Same goes for yours-Nick muttered and smiled. He completely forgot about his problems. Yang was all he could ever ask for if he wanted to leave the rest of the world behind. The blonde girl then kissed him. After that Nick got up from her lap and they started to make out on the bed. Nick was feeling great with that. Yang was the best girl he could ever meet. His love for her couldn't get bigger than what already was there.

While this was happening, Nick's hand suddenly started to slide down Yang's body and before he knew it, he had it right between her legs. When he touched her there, she quietly moaned:

-Nicky…ah, Nicky stop…someone…someone might see us-she gasped

-So what? Don't you like that?

-It's…it's not that…ah!-Yang moaned again

But no matter how much pleasure did she have from what Nick was doing, she stopped his hand and looked at him:

-Nick, we need to talk-she said, barely containing her gasps

-What's wrong?-Van Thorne asked-I was too fast, wasn't I?

-No no it has nothing to do with that

Nick and Yang hid under the quilt, because it suddenly got a little cold in the room:

-What was it?-Nick asked, but couldn't stop himself from at least touching Yang's cheek

-Nick…remember what I told you like 2 days ago? That no matter how many girls you'll be with I will always love you?

-Ummmmm…yeah? What about it?

-I was thinking…maybe you could introduce them to me?

-Yang what is this about?

-I know about you and Pyrrha-Yang sounded a bit sad-seconds after she broke up with Jaune, she jumped right into your arms. She told me that

-Oh…-Nick sounded sad too-I…I understand. I'm not worthy to be your boyfriend anymore. I knew I cheated on you back then. I hope…one day you'll forgive me, because I really am sorry

-Nick, I'm not giving up on you-Yang grabbed him by the hand-I told you I will always love you, no matter what. Pyrrha will never tear us apart, but…I know you must love her too, otherwise she would still be in hell. Besides, she has a crush on you too. I…I read a book about The Brotherhood yesterday. I know that Hexmen have big hearts and they love many girls. I fully accept that, but I want you to promise me something Nick. Please, don't forget about me…

Nick planted a deep kiss on Yang's lips:

-Never. You're the love of my life, other girls will never matter as much as you do

Yang then smiled and placed her boyfriend's hands on her chest:

-Come on then, continue what you started-she said and smiled seductively

Nick slowly started to unbutton Yang's jacket and when he got rid of that he gently removed her top. She then suddenly turned around:

-Hehe…you now have to go through my other armor-she giggled

But Nick just grabbed her by the waist and slipped his hand slowly through hers. He felt her breast immediately. And when she realised that, she gave herself to Nick completely. They were then later making out and for a moment Nick stopped. Yang felt his hands again between her legs:

-Nick, what are you…

-Trust me-said Nick and grinned widely-you will definitely enjoy this

Yang felt as Nick's hands pull down her shorts. She was completely naked now before him. She blushed and suddenly felt a weird feeling between her legs:

-My goodness, what are you…-she said and looked under the quilt. She saw Nick's head stuck between her legs with his tongue out-Oh, you little perverted devil!

Suddenly what Nick was doing started to tickle her. Until he started to do it harder. It was then that she felt as she's about to „explode":

-No…no…Nick, stop…ah…this is so weird…ah…but it feels so good…-she was moaning, while gripping the pillow tightly

Nick then started to move his tongue around even faster. He was having the time of his life. He loved to hear Yang moan. This time she really did, because back then on the ship they were careful not to wake anyone up. This time they were alone…

-No, Nick, please, do it slowly…ah…at this rate, I'm gonna…ah…I'm gonna…aaaaaaaaaaaaah!-she suddenly squealed and wrapped her legs around Nick's head, pressing him to her…ekhm…womb (omg, it's getting really hard to not turn this into some „lemon" fanfiction)

Nick could barely breathe when Yang finally let him go. His face was still a bit covered in Yang's…ekhm…fluids. The blonde girl was still heavily breathing when Nick was washing his face. After that Yang looked at him and kissed him once again:

-That…was amazing-she said, still gasping a lot. Nick could clearly feel that a lot of Yang's saliva was on her tongue. Did she feel THAT good? Nick was slightly confused, but with that thought he hugged his girlfriend. He could smell her hair very well. When later he made sure she is asleep he left the bed. „I can't let that take all my time. Of course, time like that may one day come, but I have to talk to Will and make plans regarding the rescue of his new friend. I also need to get back to my room on time or Arslan and Reese will think again that I died. Phew…my tongue sure feels better after what happened though, fufufu"

With that thought he opened the door to Yang's room and went through it. He looked to his right and walked straight to his room. By the doors he was about to press the knob…

When he suddenly felt something weird on his hips. He looked down only to see small hands wrapping themselves around his waist. At first he wanted to scream, thinking that the situation with Malachite sisters will repeat itself. But then he noticed characteristical black ribbons tied on these hands. Also the girl that was doing that wasn't forceful like Melanie or Miltia. She just gently held Nick by the waist and later he felt her head clinging onto his back. She had a warm breath and because she was completely clinging to him, he could even feel her heartbeat. It was very fast. Nick wanted to turn around and find out who the girl is just to confirm if he's right but he also didn't want to ruin the atmosphere. That girl was clearly enjoying herself. After a while she let out a weird sound. Nick realised it was like a cat's purr. Now he knew for certain who „assaulted" him by the doors:

-I can feel you shivering-whispered the girl softly-sorry if I startled you

-Blake, it's past everyone's bedtime. I think even Tromberg sleeps right now and I'd really like to sleep too, I have classes tomorrow. So if you could, then please…

But the faunus girl didn't let him go. She just clinged to Van Thorne's shoulder. He could clearly feel she's standing on her toes and could see her face a little bit. For a second he was wondering what does she want, but turns out she might have read his thoughts:

-My legs are killing me. Could you…carry me around?

-I might try-said Nick, a bit embarrassed by the situation. He then felt as Blake jumps and now her hands were around his neck, while her legs were wrapped around his waist

-Meow?-Blake made another cat noise. Nick rolled his eyes around, feeling completely awkward

-Alright, let's go- he said and slowly walked away from the doors to his room. Belladonna kept clinging onto him, purring from time to time. But she didn't let him take her to her room. She was then covering his eyes and giggling. After a while Nick realised something:

-Where are you actually leading me?-he asked

-Right there, hon-she said, chuckled and pointed at some room

-To…janitor's office? What if he's still there?

-Don't worry-Blake just whispered softly-I made sure we're gonna be all alone there

-Gulp-Nick swallowed saliva in fear but kept going with Blake on his shoulders to the place she pointed him to go. When they finally reached it and Nick opened the door, he couldn't believe what he's seeing.

Usually the janitor's office was a bit dirty, all his stuff was lying around and the entire place seemed like a coffin. This time it was much, much different. Nick could see a big mattress in the place where a lot of shelves used to be, a blanket thrown over it, rose petals on the floor, a couple of candles giving a warm light and a couple of other things. Of course it was dark:

-Surprise!-Blake giggled on Nick's back and got down from it quickly. She walked up to the desk and took something from it. When Nick looked closer he could see wine glasses and the bottle of wine itself. Blake had only two glasses in her hands

-Ummmmm…Blake? What is this about?

-I just thought we could…share a little more time together, you know? Now that you've defeated Mikaelsen and thanks to you the southern Mistral is opened again, we have a reason to celebrate! Took me a couple of days to convince our grumpy janitor and prepare all this, but I hope the delay wasn't too big?-she then passed Nick a glass of wine. He took it, his hand was shaking a little. „Knowing my luck, this is gonna end weird" he quickly thought.

Nick and Blake sat on the mattress, sipping wine and talking. A little later Blake took out a big sushi set which both she and the Hexman were eating. From time to time Blake was having a „chopstick fight" with Nick or was teasing him with what she was about to eat. A little later they were done and all that was left was the wine. Though Nick's mind was still clear (wine wasn't having a big impact on him), Blake was completely overwhelmed by how much she drank. At one point…something weird started happening:

-Adam once told me my lips are too narrow…-she laughed in her drunken state and gave Van Thorne a goofy look-are they?

-Nope…not at all-Nick was feeling slightly weaker too after that 4th glassful.

Hexmen have a certain way of measuring alcohol. Well…wine to be precise. By how they are drunk from it they can determine how many glassfuls they drank. Nick was after 4th glassful, which means he was at the 1st degree of drunkeness. While this happens, the Hexman starts having trouble with proper speaking, sometimes he says weird things and might pretend he's asleep. This is what happened to Nick back then:

-In fact-he said and raised his finger-I think, Blakey, that your lips could be great for kissing. Or should I say…it's probably the 2nd most beautiful thing you can do with them…and the 3rd one would be smiling. You have…a fucking beautiful smile, y'know that?

-Fufufu-Blake giggled-you're so sweet. Come here, give me the kiss

Blake then stretched her arms out, caught Nick and smooched him on the cheek. She kept doing that, while Van Thorne was trying to shake her off:

-Blake, please…I might be drunk but not THAT drunk

-You're right! We need more drinks-Blake seemed overjoyed. She quickly grabbed the bottle and poured the wine back into the glasses. They were both sipping it very slowly, but eventually Nick emptied his. Same with 2 next.

When a Hexman drinks more than 7 glassful of wine his mood starts to change (AKA 2nd degree of drunkeness). Usual sight then is tears. Mostly from depression and sadness, but not really. Sometimes they cry from joy

-I'm so glad I have a friend like you!-suddenly Nick bursted out crying and hugged Blake. Even though she was completely drunk, she still got very confused. But a little later she hugged him back

-Shhhhhh, don't cry on me or I'll start too-mumbled Blake and kissed Nick on the head. She couldn't help but smell his hair while doing so-your hair smells really good today

-You really think so? I didn't like this shampoo, thought it has a smell too strong for me

-I don't smell the shampoo, but your hair in general has great smell

-I guess you're right. How much more do we have in the bottle?

Blake took the bottle back in her hand and looked at it closely:

-I guess it will be enough for 3 more glasses I think for me and you

-Then let's empty this bottle finally

And so, Nick and Blake emptied a whole bottle of wine. When a Hexman drinks 10 or more glassful of wine he enters the highest 3rd degree of drunkeness. Then Hexman loses control over his senses, completely giving in to the alcoholic trance. The most common symptom then is a complete loss of any borders. Hexman who is drunk like that has no idea what he says, but looks like he does:

-Blake?-Nick suddenly asked with a serious tone. He looked at her with shiny eyes-do you love me?

Belladonna almost dropped her glass on the ground, but she managed to quickly put it on the floor near the mattress. Her eyes almost popped out of her eye sockets, she couldn't be blushing more. For a moment her voice was stuck in her throat, tears started to form in her eyes. Nick was patiently waiting:

-Yes…yes, Nick…I love you-she finally said-do…do you?

-Yes-Nick replied-yes, I love you too

Blake quickly tackled Nick to the mattress, deeply kissing him. She could feel what was left of Van Thorne's visit at Yang's room, but that's not what she cared about. Finally, the man she was dreaming of was in her arms…

-What is that?-she smiled, while her tongue was intertwining with Nick's-I think it's getting tight down there

Suddenly Nick felt that his boner is really getting out of hand. He was trying to move the other way, but Blake quickly grabbed him by the hands and pinned them to the mattress:

-You just relax and let kitty take care of you-Blake said, giggled and let go of his hands. Nick could barely feel them. Suddenly he heard as his pants are being unzipped. He blushed embarrassed, hearing Blake gasping upon seeing THAT

-Fufufu-he chuckled

-Oh my-Blake said-you and Yang didn't do anything?

-What? H…how the hell you know about it?-Nick asked, confused

-I heard her moaning so I sat down by the doors and…kinda started doing things-Blake said and blushed

At that moment Nick realized that his pants are still down. Blake then slowly crawled up to him:

-Well…what are you waiting for? Come on, touch me-Blake said, looking him seductively in the eyes

Nick's hands reached out for the faunus girl's butt. Once he placed his hands on it, Blake gasped:

-You know-she said-if Yang didn't take all of you tonight…then I will have the rest

And after these words the Hexman and the brunette faunus girl started to furiously make out, while they desperately were undressing each other. Once all the clothes were scattered across the room, Blake disappeared under the blanket, making Nick suddenly feel good between his legs (just like he made Yang feel). A little later Nick was smelling Blake's hair, while they were making passionate love in that small janitor's office which Belladonna turned into a romantic bedroom.

That was the first time for Nick to have sex with a faunus. He had to admit, it was slightly different. Mainly because they were burning with desire so hot you couldn't stop them even if you were a Hexman. When Nick and Blake were already after the climax and were slowly getting sober, Nick was glad the Malachite sisters were humans.

Even though the Hexman can get easily drunk with light alcohol, the beverage quickly drifts away from his body. Just like with stronger drinks, which leave even quicker. But the first thing every Hexman feels after the alcohol is nothing different from what humans and faunus feel-hangover. The awful headache was consuming Nick's head, but apart from that he felt okay. He looked around to make sure he is still in the last place he remembered…and then noticed Blake. She was clinging into his chest and didn't even bother waking up. Van Thorne could feel and hear her purring quietly. He then realized something.

"Oh no! Just how stupid am I?! Another girl lands with me in bed! I feel like a slut, though I am a guy. What am I doing?! What is the time?! Yes, that's the best thing to do to not think about the guilt for at least a second!"

Nick stretched his hand out, managing to get his Scroll into his hands. He quickly looked at the clock. It was 2:30. Blake must have noticed that because then Nick heard as she slowly raises her head:

-Mmmmmmm…what's wrong?

-Ummmmmm…take a guess?-Nick said

Blake looked around her, confused. She didn't seem shocked or anything like that:

-Can't you see that we…ekhm…you know?-Nick said after a while

-Huh?-Blake seemed emotionless from being sleepy-what about it?

-That's a pretty weird reaction to the fact that you lost your virginity with me-Van Thorne laughed

-I don't regret it-Blake said and smiled-after all, my dream came true

-So your dream was to drag me to bed?-Van Thorne forced a smile

-I didn't do that just because I desired you-said Blake and for a second she looked angry-I love you. Have you already forgotten that?

"Oh that's right! I really said it! I confessed to Blake. Was that true though?"

-Yeah, I remember-he said and smiled

-And I can't stand you being Yang's boyfriend, nor Pyrrha's lover-replied the faunus girl and started to cry. Nick felt the girl's tears going down his chest. "Oh man, how the hell am I going to stop this? Think, Nicky, think! Oh yes! I'll just do what Yang said! Though, will I be true with my feelings if I say that right now?" he looked at Blake sobbing. "Yes, yes I will be"

-Hey, Blake-he said-I love you too. Come here

And after that they kissed. This time it was a sober kiss and they both felt very good with it. Blake was still crying, but this time from joy. But when they stopped she looked at him confused:

-But…what about the rest?

-Pyrrha once told me that I have a big heart and will love many girls in my life. I think it has space for you for sure

-Come to think of it…there was something like that mentioned in the book about The Brotherhood we all read a couple of days ago…I think you call these "harems"?

-Well yes…but harems are usually focused just on sex

-And…you are not?-Blake didn't seem like she fully believes him, but managed to chuckle while saying that

-Of course not! Sometimes sex would be even too much for me. I realized that when I saw Pyrrha after what Jaune did to her. Sometimes all you really need from a girl is just a kiss and a smile

-Wait a minute. So you're telling me that you and Pyrrha haven't…-Blake paused and did the gesture with her fingers, making a circle out of two of them on one hand and putting one finger from the other hand through the circle…and of course making that seductive face Nick was very uncomfortable with

-Nope-Van Thorne quickly replied and blushed

-Yeah, sure-Blake giggled-I bet you already know the color of every girl's underwear in this school, pervert

-Only yours and Yang's-Nick smiled and kissed Blake again

-Oh yeah? Then tell me if you still remember. You were, after all, very drunk

-It's pretty simple-Nick then stood up and started to dress back up. When he was checking the gears in his coat after putting it on he looked back at Blake. His pale green eyes glared at her, making her feel warm in the heart-you have white panties with blue stripes

-That's correct-she replied and threw something at Nick. It was her underwear. But Nick didn't catch it and it awkwardly landed on his face. Van Thorne started to panic, but ultimately he took the panties in his hands. They were just as he thought-you can keep them as a souvenir. After all, we're not just friends anymore…Nicholas Van Thorne

-I'll keep that in mind…Blake Belladonna-said Nick without looking at her as he was leaving her room…and putting her underwear in a pocket no one would try to look in. Just as he was about to close the door behind him…

-Wait-she said-before you leave, you didn't tell me what panties is Yang wearing

-Fufufu-Nick chuckled-I didn't say…because she never wears any-after that he left the janitor's office and proceeded to go to his room.

When he finally pushed the door knob and snuck into the room, he felt relief. "No more weird adventures anymore this night. I really need to sleep, the hangover hasn't wore off entirely yet" he thought as he was preparing for sleep. He slipped into the bed he shared with Arslan and Reese (as always, between them) and immediately closed his eyes.

He opened his eyes in the morning, hearing Arslan and Reese gasping at the same time all of a sudden. He looked around…just to blush embarrassed:

-I believe that's what you call "a morning wood"-said Arslan and giggled

-Oh, look. He's waking up-laughed Reese-morning, sleepyhead

Nick tried to pretend like he didn't hear them gossiping and just casually woke up, washed himself in the bathroom, dressed back up and left the room with the whole team ABRN. Nick still had a boner, which was annoying him now that he had his pants on. Trying to calm himself down he heard Nadir whispering to Bolin:

-Why is he walking so funny? I thought only girls walk funny now that he's got them under his…

-I heard that!-Nick said loudly, almost yelling

When he finally calmed down and his pants stopped feeling so tight, he suddenly heard his Scroll's ringtone. A very aggressive death metal track blasted the Scroll's speaker just to inform the Hexman that someone's calling:

-Ugh, who the hell listens to this noise?!-Arslan yelled. She sounded pissed off

-That's my Scroll. I'll go get it, you wait for me near the classroom-said Nick

-Damn…you sure have an appropriate ringtone for when your mum calls-said Nadir. When Bolin heard that he hit him in the back of the head-ow! What was that for? Ooooooooh…shit I forgot

Team ABRN walked away, leaving Nick behind, who was struggling with his pocket, trying to pull the Scroll out from it. The death metal track kept on playing, getting more and more noisy. Nick had a feeling that the speakers Scrolls have are too weak to handle his music taste. When he finally pulled the device out, he looked at the caller:

-Roman? What the hell does he want?-said Nick to himself and picked up the call-yes?

-Nicky! How is it going, my friend? Listen, I have a little problem with Junior's girls. Remember when we recently told you about the project for the club called "Angel and Demon"?

-Yeah…you wanted Melanie and Miltia to become professional pole dancers, I remember that

-That's right! But…we have a bit of a problem…they don't wanna do it. No, scratch that. They said they only will pole dance for you. What do you know about this?

-Uhhhhhhh…nothin'-Nick replied, blushing-are you sure that's what they said?

-Yeah, 100% sure. Junior's crapping his pants, suspecting they are in love with you or something. But…that's impossible, right?

-Of course-Nick then reminded himself of that horrible night in "Dante Will Cry" and the back room

-Anyway, Van Thorne…how is Haven holdin' up after that cock sucker Mikaelsen bit the dust?

-Pretty okay, Tromberg has more duties but she handles them pretty well. Qrow sometimes gives her a hand, but usually she does everything by herself. But…Will and I have a problem which occurred recently. His friend's been kidnapped in the eastern district but he has no idea where he is

-I see…hmmmmm…that's a tricky problem. Eastern district is under total control of the White Fang and local mobsters. Luckily for us, there are people who are brave or stupid enough to spy there. You see, I've never been to the western district of the city, but I keep hearing that there is a great café, which coincidentally is a meeting point for the protesting agents and spies. This place is filled with contacts, great coffee, cakes, cookies, whatever you wish. We could go there and find out if someone knows about your friend's…friend-at the end Roman stuttered a bit

-That sounds like a good idea. Meet me and Will near the gates to Haven around 8 p.m.-said Nick

-Sure. See you then-replied Torchwick and hung up

Nick's day was quite tiring for the rest. The students were a bit annoying on Grimmistics:

-Jesus, Sun, take that pen out of your nose!

-Jaune, what's so funny about Goliaths having longer trunks than normal elephants?

-Hey, you two! Can you save gossips about my eyes for the break?

When the bell rang, Nick was relieved that it's finally over. When he left the classroom, he went to the cantine to grab a drink. There, he met Will:

-What's up?-he asked his friend while he was taking a seat next to him

-Nothing-Vengh replied-I was trying to send an e-mail to Schnee but they completely blocked their mailboxes. I think they're really coming here, Nick. I think it's safe to say we're both fucked

-Not really-Nick replied while sipping energy drink from his can-I got a call from Roman earlier. He knows a café somewhere in the western part of the city where they might know about Stephen

-I think Qrow mentioned that place once-Will replied-it's called "The Informatory" I think

-You wanna go there with me and Roman? He will meet us near the gates around 8 p.m.

-That's an hour from now! Let's not waste time-Will said and got up from his stool

Nick got up from his too, finished the energy drink and tossed the can into the rubbish bin. He and Vengh reached the gate and waited there for about 45 minutes. When Roman finally arrived, he was energetic as hell:

-Well isn't that great to see you two? Wait…I think I know you but we never really been introduced-Roman stretched out his hand to Will

-Yes. William Vengh. You must be Roman Torchwick, right?-said the cyborg and quickly shaked Torchwick's hand

-That's correct-Roman said and smiled-well then, ready to go?

And so, Nick, Roman and Will proceeded towards the western district to start searching for Vengh's lost friend. When they finally arrived, they noticed the barricade keeping them out of the western part.

It wasn't a big wall like the one Haven raised to isolate itself from southern district but instead it was a tall fence with barbed wires surrounding it. "Thank god it's not electrified" Will thought. Nick and Roman walked up to the guard blocking the only hole in the fence through which you could enter the western district:

-Sorry, sir. This is a restricted area. I'm not allowed to let anyone in, Tromberg's orders

-Oh come on-Roman said, smiled and put his arm around the guard's back-you know that the best coffee always comes from "The Informatory". Admit it, you wanna go there too. Come on, don't be shy

-No-the guard replied without showing any emotion

Roman's face turned from a smile to an angry expression:

-You leave me no choice then-he said and turned his back on the guard only to suddenly swing his cane right at his face. The not thickened edge hit the guard in the left cheek, knocking him out. After Torchwick switched the grip on his cane to the proper one, both Nick and Will heard the bodyguard snoring

-Well…that's one way to get there I suppose-Nick said

-The most effective one-Roman replied as he was carefully walking over the unconscious guard through the hole in the fence-sleep is the cheapest bribe

The 3 heroes entered the western part of city of Mistral. It looked a bit different from the southern district before it was opened. The lights were on in houses, but the streets were empty at night as always. But, as the Hexman, cyborg and the former criminal walked through the protesting district, they suddenly saw the place they wanted to go:

-"The Informatory. Coffee, sugar and atmosphere"-Will read the signboard-the hell is that supposed to mean?

-As they say-Roman grunted-appearances can be deceiving

-I hope we will find the information we're looking for here-said Nick and ran up to the door

-Van Thorne, what are you…oh shit. Don't!-Roman screamed but it was too late. Nick already kicked the door to the café open

-Alright motherfuckers! 8000 Liens for someone who will give us information we're lookin' for!-he yelled. All the customers inside looked at him, shocked. One waitress, on the other hand, caught Van Thorne's attention. Instead of looking at him like the rest did she was just quickly serving her guests, not even trying to gaze at the Hexman. However, Nick managed to catch her attention when she was about to go to the personnel room. Her eyes intrigued him but then he heard voices coming from one of the tables and the girl disappeared behind the door to the personnel room:

-Yeah, I got some useful stuff for you-said some suspicious guy who was sitting with his two friends by some table and bititng a cigar in his mouth-but this information…might hurt the fuck out of you!

At that moment all 3 guys jumped from their table. They had submachine guns in their hands and started to fire them at Nick, who was still standing near the door. Customers started to panic, run around, scream and escape. Nick, to avoid being hurt, hid under the glass window outside of the café. Roman and Will sat next to him:

-You really thought this would work?!-Roman yelled. He seemed angry-Those are the mobsters I was talking about!

-Whoever they are, I have something just for them!-said Will and suddenly a rifle appeared in his hand. He exposed himself a little from the cover and started shooting at the mobsters. He got one of them, while the other 2 were still firing a wave of bullets. Roman then left the cover, aimed his cane and fired the explosive projectile, which exploded right at another mobster. There was only one left, but he didn't hesitate and focused his fire at Torchwick. A couple of his bullets hit the ginger guy in the arm. Roman hissed from pain, but then Nick jumped out of his cover with the two golden guns and fired the bullets right at the enemy while in the air. The mobster hit the ground dead. Everything was okay…except for Roman's arm:

-Agh, fuck! It hurts!-he was now yelling from pain

-We gotta take him to the club-Nick said-we're not finding any contacts today. Someone needs to clean this mess up-when he finished, he immediately thought about the mysterious girl who went to the personnel room but instead of following her he helped Will carry Torchwick to "Dante Will Cry". They all managed to get through the side doors. Junior and the Malachite sisters awaited them in the main hall. It was empty, because the club was closed from 5 a.m.:

-Christ, what happened to him?-Junior panicked a little

-He got shot a couple of times. Nothing too serious, but he couldn't go on-said Nick

-Agh! Fuck! Agh!-yelled Roman again when Nick and Will were passing him to Junior

-I'll see what I can do-Junior replied-girls, come. You'll be needed

Melanie and Miltia followed Junior, but until they went through the door to the back corridor, their eyes were focused on Nick. Right after they disappeared Will started to freak out:

-Fucking shit!-he yelled and kicked the wall

-Calm down, Will. At least he's alive

-At least he's alive?! At least he's alive?! Every second we waste gets Schnee closer to Mistral and our ruin and you're happy that some criminal you barely know lives?! We could have avoided this if we left that bitch Weiss there! But no, you had to be all gentleman and shit!

-Shut your mouth!-Nick yelled. William shivered-I understand your anger, but it won't get us anywhere. Besides, if we left Weiss back there, you'd suffer much worse punishment from Schnee because he'd find us here anyway, so shut up!

Will got quiet for a second. After a while, however, he said in a calmer tone:

-I'm sorry, I just…

-Do you have any idea, why I did this? You might consider this being a gentleman but it's not that. I just…look, have you ever felt like you could do more so that some suffering doesn't happen? Have you ever suffered by yourself from the weakness of paralyzing fear? I already experienced that once. I had to sit in the burning shed, locked up, and had to watch as those MONSTERS from Lahilla rape and shoot my mother! As they humiliate and decapitate my father! Sometimes I have a feeling like I could have broken out of there, help them…and this makes me hate myself. This is why I never hesitate to help others. Because I know that if you feel like you can help others yet you choose to not do so…you will never live peacefully again

-I…I understand-Will replied

-What time is it?-Nick looked at the clock on the wall-6 a.m.

-Nick, I…

-It's okay, William. You didn't know. I need a nap-Van Thorne replied and walked away towards the back room, where he spent night with Malachite sisters. He quickly jumped on the bed and closed his eyes.

Nick slept for a long time. When he looked at his Scroll it was 17:00. "Holy shit! How come I was sleeping so long? I must wake up!" he thought while running out of the room he was in. Will was sleeping on the bar stool, his head was on the counter. Junior, Melanie and Miltiades were walking around the main hall, talking to the henchmen. Van Thorne walked up to Will and hit him in the back of the head:

-Wake up!

-Ugh…is it morning already?-Will asked when he slowly raised his head and corrected the hat

-Morning? It's fucking 5 p.m. already! We need to go to the café, I'm sure they managed to clean our mess up

-Shit! For real?! We gotta go-Will jumped off the bar stool and he started to quickly walk with Nick towards the exit…when suddenly Malachite sisters started to pull Nick's coat:

-Wait a second-Melanie said in a serious tone. Nick immediately turned around, while Will went through the front door

-What do you want?-Nick asked

-Roman's feeling alright. His arm is gonna be completely cured in about a day. But your mission must be very urgent if you're going out so early…

-What are you implying?-Nick asked with hands on his hips

-We could help you and that friend of yours. Roman told us what you need to do so we would just make sure you're not in any trouble-said Miltia

-Absolutely not!-Will suddenly yelled from behind the door. Turns out he heard all the conversation-you're not taking these hoes with us!

-Hey hey hey! Calm down!-said Nick

-Please, Nicky-Melanie and Miltia grabbed him by the hands-we really wanna be with you

-You know what? That's it! I'll do this by myself! I'll go alone to the café, I don't need your help. Will, get back inside! I'm going alone to the Informatory-he said, released his hands and walked out through the main door

-But…Nick!-Melanie tried to call him back but all she heard was the door shutting

-William, did you hear me?!-Nick was pissed off when he finally caught up with his friend

-Nick…I think it's too late-he said and pointed at the sky

A huge ship was landing in the center of the southern district of the city. A whole fleet of smaller ones were gliding in the sky, not proceeding to land. When the ship landed and the scared civillians ran away, Van Thorne realized who that is:

-Oh…no…-he said

The door of the big ship opened and a staircase emerged with it. Two figures walked down the stairs slowly, surrounded by Atlesian knights.

One of them was a male. A bit short, chubby, in a white suit, with short white hair and a moustache in the same color. Just by one look Nick thought to himself "what a stuck up prick".

The other person caught Nick's eye more. It was a very tall, slim and elegant woman in an army uniform, with a cutlass attached to her army belt. Her skin was very pale and her white hair was tied in a bun. Her eyes were in a little darker shade of blue than Weiss. At first Nick thought it might be her, but when he looked closer he realized something. "Nah, it's not Weiss. She's taller and has more curves than Weiss. Especially that cleavage, damn!" Nick thought and grinned awkwardly. Will, on the other hand, was totally frightened:

-Oh no, oh no, oh no! It's him! And Winter too!-he was saying in fear. Suddenly Nick noticed that the male accompanying Weiss' older sister is looking at him with an aristocratic look. He whispered something to Winter and she started to walk towards Will and Nick. Vengh completely panicked and hid behind Van Thorne. When the tall girl stopped right in front of the Hexman, she seemed even a bit taller than him:

-Ekhm…William Vengh, I can see you-she said. Her voice was cold and very strict. Nick grinned awkwardly-is something funny to you, stranger?

-No no, m'lady. Absolutely nothing-said Nick and chuckled

-I sense your sarcasm. Now move away or you will be arrested too for obstructing the standard procedures of Atlesian investigation

-Fufufu. Being cuffed by you would be a pleasure, just make sure the key won't get stuck in your…chest-Nick replied. Winter got red from anger

-Stop, Nick!-Will suddenly said and walked from behind Van Thorne's back-I surrender, Winter. Take me with you

Weiss' older sister grabbed William by the spine like some kind of dog and dragged him closer and closer to the Atlesian Knights, completely forgetting about Nick. The Hexman was standing by the door to Junior's club and for a second he wanted to go inside and ask Malachite sisters to come with him…but then he came up with some kind of idea. He quickly ran up towards Harland Schnee. Atlesian Knights pointed their guns at him, but with the old man's one gesture they all lowered them:

-Schnee, if I may-Nick said

-You again?-Winter seemed bored when she looked at him when she was cuffing Will near the staircase

-If you respect the international law, then you will allow me to use Honorable Veto, right? Because I challenge you to this!

-Are you nuts?!-Will yelled-this is insane

-Shut up-Winter put her finger on Vengh's mouth without looking at him

-Ehhhhhhh-Harland Schnee sighed-fine, you have 24 hours to prove Will's innocence. If you don't, your friend will be judged for the crimes he is arrested for

-It's good to know you didn't lose this part of your honor, Harland-said Nick

-However-the old Schnee raised his finger-I'm sending Winter on this mission with you as your supervisor. She'll be the first to know when your time is up

-I shall do my best-Winter jumped off the staircase and landed right next to Nick

-One last thing-Mr. Schnee asked-what is your name, stranger?

-Nicholas Van Thorne

-What?! Nicky's here?!-suddenly a voice could be heard from inside the ship and another figure ran down the staircase. Nick couldn't believe his eyes

-Ironwood? What are you doing here?

-Me and the rest of Beacon staff had to move here while Atlas fixes the damage in Vale. The dragon will soon be transported to the military's headquarters-said the familiar general. He seemed happy to see Nick

-James, you know this boy?-Harland Schnee asked

-Yup. That's Glynda's nephew. You can be sure that whatever task he may have he'll do it very well. After all, he's a Hexman

-A He…what?-Winter asked

-A freak, to say the least-Nick finished the sentence

-Nicholas, your aunt will be glad to see you. She's been worried for a couple of days now, but I'll make sure to tell her you're okay. She could use some good news-said Ironwood

-Well then, mr. Van Thorne-said Schnee with a bit softer tone-good luck to you

Nick and Winter then walked away from the Atlesian ship and from the distance saw as the staircase hides and the gate closes. When they could barely see it, it raised up in the air and flew towards Haven. For a while Winter was slowly walking with Nick with her hands behind her back, completely not looking at him even for a second. Nick decided to break the silence:

-Ekhm…so ummmmm…apologies for earlier…I was being an asshole, sorry

-Hmpf-Winter pouted in response

-You're completely different than your sister-Nick said and smiled

-Because I have to wear a bigger bra, is that what you mean?-Winter asked angrily

-No, I mean you do but…you seem to be a bit…colder

Winter sighed, but Nick noticed she cracked a half-smile hearing that unintentional pun:

-I'm sorry too-said Weiss' older sister, this time softly

-Don't try to steal my credit-Nick laughed-it was all my fault back there

-Maybe…but I still feel bad for threatening to arrest you. I know I might not seem like someone who could think that, but I do. So…you're Nick, right?

-Yes, and you're Winter. I heard of you…

-You…you did?-At first Schnee's eyes went wide but later she blushed-but…I'm not as interesting as my dad

-Your dad is a public persona, so everyone knows about him. But when someone becomes known to everyon it gets simply boring. That's why I always look at what's not that known. I must say, now that I met you I am…very intrigued

-Are you trying to compliment me?-said Winter. She sounded as she can't believe what she hears

-Ummmmm…well…ummmm…

-Whatever. I already got used to the fact that everyone I know hates me-said Winter

At that point their conversation stopped as they were approaching the fence between the districts. This time there was a different guard, who let Winter through right when she told him, who she is. After that they were calmly walking towards the café they already could see in the distance. Winter clearly was worried about all the surrounding silence, but the lights in houses were making her feel more relaxed. The sun almost hid behind the horizon as she and Nick were getting closer to the café.

When it finally flashed in front of them, it looked like new. "It either had good insurance or workers didn't want to lose their only place to relax and helped rebuilding by themselves". Winter stopped by the entrance and smiled. Nick felt like it's very genuine:

-I remember this place-she said-back when I was little and Weiss wasn't even born yet, I used to come here every time we were at holiday in Mistral. It was…back in those good days when mum was still with us…

-Well…would you like to live those memories again?-said Nick as he opened the door to the café. He stood aside to let Winter get in first and came after her, quietly closing the door behind him. This time they could finally get a better view at the place they were in.

The Informatory looked very elegant, yet had a modern and kinda urban look inside. The tables were square and guests were sitting on black sofas and right behind them was another sofa and another table. The sofas were connected with some kind of a wooden slab. Some guests, on the other hand, were sitting on high chairs by the round tables, which was considered old stylish.

However, Winter and Nick decided to take a seat on one of those sofas at a spot which the white-haired woman remembered from her childhood. Very close to their seat stood a vending machine which, surprisingly for Nick, had popsicles:

-So…do you have any…flashbacks?-The Hexman asked his "supervisor"

-Actually, yeah…at first I had doubts if I would but now I can see everything from back when I was a child. This is the spot we were always choosing. Dad was always taking a coffee with ice, mum was taking a peach smoothie and I just absolutely loved the chocolate milkshake with whipped cream, wafer sprinkles and chocolate syrup. Dad was always going "You're gonna puke rainbows if you'll keep ordering that, Winter" but he never tried to prevent me from doing it-Winter seemed like she lives the nostalgia again. For a second Nick even thought he can see her wiping a tear off her eye-sorry, got something stuck in my eye

-Yeah, sure-Nick said and took the card that was nearby, trying to decide what to choose for himself-hey, this looks promising!

-What?

-"Strawberry Sunrise"-Nick read-"a strawberry smoothie with ice, whipped cream and wild strawberry jam". You think this is a good idea?

-Sounds pretty good. I'll still take my choco milkshake-Winter said and smiled. Van Thorne then noticed a gleam in her eyes-however…before we go further, I need to ask you…why did you stood up for Vengh? You could just walk away but instead you chose to use the Veto. Why?

-We knew each other with Will since we were little kids. As you probably know, he's not from any kingdom. He comes from the Gwynbleidd village, just like me. But we were a little different. Will was raised by an abusive family, very bad mother…and even worse father. One day, however, he told himself he can't take this anymore and…joined The Brotherhood with the will and determination to become a Hexman. That's how we met, though we used to see each other before he decided to join us but spoke very briefly. Will and I were barely 6 when that happened. Since then, Vengh was like a brother to me. We were training together, lived together in the castle, shared everything we had, complete comradery. Then when our training was done, we had to do initiation. It was then that William started to have doubts, which ultimately led to him rejecting The Brotherhood. Even though my parents were furious and called him all possible names, our friendship never died. I went through initiation and its effects work on me to this day. William, on the other hand, applied for a job at our local store, which was selling fireworks. So…he was already working while I was still learning at the Hexman University

-What separated you?

-Winter, have you heard of "The Purification"?-Nick asked, curious if the Schnees were even aware of that part of history

-"The night, when Inverted Cross devoured the past?"-Winter used a poetic phrase from one of the archives

-I see you read the historical poems of Kanterulv-Nick smiled-but his version of the story was a complete bullshit

-Then what's the truth?-Winter seemed intrigued

-No family in Gwynbleidd burned their house, impaled an infant or threw poo at horses. That was all Lahilla's work. That "throwing poo at horses" part never really happened, it was just pure imagination, narcotic dreams and hallucinations of Kanterulv

-How do you know this?

-It's because I was there, and Will too. That's what separated us. But I managed to escape, while Will didn't have that much luck. This is why you see him as a cyborg. For a very long time I thought he really died. I don't want him to go for real this time. This is why I used Veto. I'll find Stephen…for him

-Who's Stephen?-Winter raised her eyebrow in confusion

Nick's eyes went wide looking at her but then suddenly their conversation was interrupted. A girl walked up to their table. She had a green apron on her arms and tied around her waist and was very short. Nick recognized her-it was the girl from before, that waitress. Her green eyes looked at him and Winter and after that she took out a writing pad and a pen. She smiled nicely, closing her eyes. What was most confusing, however, was the fact she was completely silent. She didn't say a single word. Nick already got suspicious, but Winter didn't seem to be bothered by that:

-Good evening! We'll take a strawberry sunrise and a choco milkshake-said Winter

The waitress quickly noted everything, nodded and walked away to her area. Nick was staring at her when she was walking away. Her black twintails were waving a little bit from her pace. Winter caught him out of that:

-Hey, are you having dirty thoughts about her already?-Winter asked suspiciously and chuckled

-What? Of course not! I was just…checking her out-Nick said and grinned awkwardly

-Were you also just checking ME out back there before you made that terrible boob joke?

-Well…-Nick grunted-I had to check you out very well because you were quite a surprise. I mean I expected you to be older than Weiss for sure but I didn't know you were…

-Hmmmmm?-Winter moved her head closer to Nick's, staring deeply in his eyes-didn't know I was…

-Didn't know you were that beautiful-Van Thorne didn't bite his tongue at the right moment and ended up saying his thoughts. Immediately after that he covered his mouth. Winter got back to her previous position, moving her head away from the Hexman, smiled…and blushed

-Nah, I'm barely average-she said-you're flattering me

-Eheh…heheheh…maybe a little bit. You asked me if I'm trying to compliment you so…I just tried that out

-You're unbelievable, Nick-she replied, while the waitress was suddenly approaching them with two plastic cups in her hands. She carefully placed them on the table. Winter just thanked her and when she went back to her duties, she started to play with her straw, mixing the sprinkles, syrup and whipped cream together-you're nice like that to every girl or is it just your morbid attraction to older women like me?

-Well…I'm nice to every pretty girl if that's what you're asking-Nick couldn't look her in the eyes. He was pretending as if he was focused on mixing whipped cream in his smoothie with the jam, but Winter knew very well how awkward he's feeling right now…and she liked that. She also liked the fact that he's secretly trying to flirt with her, but is too shy to do so.

After what Nick said they both were sitting in an awkward silence, slurping their ordered beverages. When Nick stopped, he decided to break the silence:

-I'm taking it without ice next time

-Next time-Winter's eyes suddenly gave Nick a completely different look-it won't be strawberry sunrise you'll have in your mouth

-Wh…wh…what?-Nick stuttered utterly confused when suddenly he felt something weird. His eyes almost popped out of his eye sockets. He slowly looked under the table. Winter was stretching one of her legs out, her foot covered in boots with heels was massaging Nick's crotch. Nick's face turned so red from embarrassment he couldn't say a word. Suddenly he felt something leaking out of his nose. He wiped it off with his finger, only to see a small stain of blood. "I got so embarrassed my nose started to bleed? Now that's a new thing" he thought to himself. Winter's smile was just getting more and more seductive. While her foot massage wasn't making Nick so embarrassed anymore, her weird gestures creating huge sexual innuendos were making Nick's hands sweat. She was taking the straw out of her milkshake, covered in whipped cream, licking it a bit and later inserting it in her mouth. Nick started to worry if someone sees what happens, but none other customer seemed to care. They all were focused on who they were with and were drinking similar beverages to those Nick and Winter had. After a while Nick got an idea:

-Eheheheh…you know, your milkshake suddenly awaken in me an urge to get a popsicle. I'll go get one, you want one too? Eeeeee…heheh…

-Hmpf…no, thanks-Winter said calmly and her seductive smiled changed into a half-smile. She took her eyes off Nick and looked through the window. Van Thorne quickly got up from the sofa and walked up to the vending machine. "About time I came up with this! If I waited any longer I'd mess up my pants really bad. In a public place, god damnit! I didn't know Winter was so…bold" he was thinking while approaching the vending machine. He looked at what was in it, the glass reflecting him a bit, making him look at his still a bit red face. "Phew…there are chocolate popsicles. How do you do that though? Eh, whatever. At least it'll be a legit excuse for Winter" he thought as he was taking a coin out of his wallet. He was about to insert it in the cash hole when it slipped through his hands and landed on the ground. Nick immediately bent over to take the coin from the floor, making sure he doesn't expose himself too much to Winter. He kept looking at her as he was getting up…when he suddenly bumped into something with his hand:

-Ah-a female voice groaned

When Nick looked in front of him, he saw an incredible sight. A pair of panties in three stripe colors-white, pink and slightly brown. Even though the sight made him feel funny at first he quickly realized what he did and raised his head up.

It was the waitress:

-Ummmm…I, ummm….Uhhhhhh…-he was stuttering

The girl didn't say anything. She just blushed and corrected a skirt she had under her apron a little. She didn't try to look in Nick's eyes. At that moment he could see how short she was. He looked back-Winter was still looking through the window. "Phew, she didn't see this" Van Thorne thought and took care of the vending machine. He got a chocolate popsicle, just as he wanted. Right after him the waitress was putting a coin in the cash hole too. Nick unpacked his popsicle and threw the paper into the nearby trashcan. After that he looked at the vending machine more to see other flavors…when he suddenly noticed a reflection of some other person in the glass. The person was doing the same thing the waitress was doing-bending over to get the popsicle out of the hole It fell in. Unfortunately he must have shaked his head too rapidly when he saw that, because the waitress noticed his movement. At first she seemed surprised but later her expression changed drastically. She was clearly pissed off and, what was even worse, Nick swore he can see the color of her eyes changing from green to pink in one eye and brown in the other one. But didn't get a clear view at that because suddenly the girl grabbed him by the ear and, despite how short she was, she started to pull him with her towards the personnel room. The pain was getting unbearable. And when Nick starts to feel pain like that, he suddenly starts screaming random gibberish. That's at least how it sounds like to most people. But in reality Nick was just speaking the language of his people (guide to Nick's native language at the end of the chapter):

-Ouch…" _Kurwa mać!"_ -he hissed

The waitress suddenly stood still, loosening her grip on Nick's ear. She looked at him, her expression now was total shock:

-" _Coś ty powiedział?"_ -she replied in the same language he used

-Huh? „ _Ty mnie rozumiesz?"_ -Nick asked confused. The girl let go of his ear and he finally could breathe a sigh of relief. At that moment Nick saw as Winter stares at him from their table, also very confused. Nick just did a gesture as if he wanted to say "everything's fine". When Schnee resumed slurping the rest of her milkshake, Nick then noticed the waitress' outfit under the apron starts to change. She didn't have a black skirt and a sleeveless black top on anymore. Instead she was dressed in a white jacket with a pink interior, brown pants, grey boots with very high heels and a black corset, which was curved in convenient places that were showing off her hips. Even more shocking was the fact that her hair changed from black twintails to untied storm of half pink and half brown hair with white streaks on the pink side. Nick was shocked that no customer noticed this weird event. The girl was not only disguised back when he came to the café with Will and Roman, but she was also very discreet about what she was doing. And when he looked at the waitress' reflection in the vending machine's glass…it was exactly the same:

- _"Nie mam pojęcia skąd znasz Gwynbleiddzki ale lepiej gadaj i to szybko"_ -she said- _„Coś ty za jeden?"_

-ekhm…-Nick grunted in response and breathed in- _„Jestem Nicholas Van Thorne, ostatni Hexman Bractwa. Kim ty jesteś?"_

- _"Neapolitanka, ale wszyscy mówią na mnie Neo"_ -the girl replied. She was clearly not proud of her name. At that moment Nick realized he still awkwardly stands with his popsicle in the air. He quickly ate it and threw the stick into the trashcan

- _"Przysiądziesz się do nas?"_ -Nick asked after that weird silence

Neo just nodded in response and took of her green apron. She put it somewhere in the personnel room and came back. She walked with Nick to his table. Winter was still finishing her milkshake. When she saw Neo, her eyes went wide:

-I knew you were flirting with her-she said, still with the straw in her mouth

The waitress blushed and sat down next to Nick. The Hexman then finished his strawberry sunrise and put the cup away:

-So…what's your name?-asked Winter

Neo didn't say anything, just awkwardly smiled

- _"No powiedz coś"_ -Nick whispered to the girl next to him. Neo just hit him in the hip gently with her arm as if she wanted to say "you're talking for me"

-Not very talkative?-Winter asked

-She…kinda doesn't understand what you're saying-Nick replied

- _"Rozumiem. Tylko po prostu nie lubię sama gadać w tym języku"_ -Neo hissed at him

-What is she saying?-Winter got very confused

-She's speaking Gwynbleiddish. That's our native language, mine and hers. She understands what you're saying but she's…too shy to speak the mutual language herself

- _"Już sobie przypomniałam"_ -Neo said- _"Jesteś tym gościem który wczoraj wdał się w strzelaninę z gangiem"_

- _„Nawet jeśli to ja to co z tego?"_ -Nick asked

- _„Chyba wiem jakich informacji szukasz. Ten cyborg z którym przyszedłeś był we wschodnim Mistral gdy ja stamtąd uciekałam. Jeśli pracujesz dla niego, będziesz potrzebować mojej pomocy"_ -Neo said

-Guys, I think we have a company-Winter suddenly said and got up from the sofa. After that she quickly drew her cutlass

Nick and Neo also got up and looked at the direction Winter was looking at. Three mobsters in white suits, looking similar to those Nick killed with Roman and Will, walked into the bar with their submachine guns already in their hands. Neo quickly ran to the counter and came back…with an umbrella:

- _"Serio chcesz walczyć parasolką?"_ -Nick asked

- _„Zamknij się"_ -Neo replied without looking at him

-Hey, it's time to pay up-said one of the mobsters to Neo

But all the waitress did was pull the handle of her umbrella, revealing a cylindrical blade. Right after that she dashed at the attackers. They fired their guns, and when bullets hit Neo, she suddenly shattered into pieces like glass. At first Nick wanted to scream, but suddenly he saw Neo materializing on the chandelier right above the mobsters. They didn't even look up on time and with one swing Neopolitan cut the chandelier off the ceiling and watched with a murderous grin as she falls with it right at one of the mobsters, crushing him to a wet stain of blood. The other 2 mobsters jumped to the sides, trying to not get caught by the flying glass shards.

Winter dashed at the next mobster without hesitation. He quickly pulled out a short red sword and deflected the blow of her cutlass. She was using her fencing skills to overpower him. When she saw a hole in his defense, she put a glyph on the ground which exploded, leaping him into the air. After that, Schnee jumped and plunged her cutlass into the mobster's spine.

Nick dealt with his mobster quite quickly. When the steel sword appeared in his hand, his opponent started to crawl on the ground, scared shitless. Nick was grinding his sword on the floor, making the enemy even more terrified. When he finally got nowhere to run, Nick raised his sword in the air. His eyes flashed at the mobster:

-Who sent you?!-Van Thorne yelled

The scared gangster just pointed at the chandelier which Neo dropped from the ceiling. After that Nick chuckled and swung his sword, plunging it into the mobster's head. When he got it out, his enemy was already dead and his head was cut in half. Nick hid the sword and walked up to Neo:

- _"Nic ci nie jest?"_ -he asked

- _„Dawno się tak dobrze nie czułam"_ -replied Neo slowly wearing off that murderous grin- _"Chciałeś się czegoś dowiedzieć o wschodniej dzielnicy, prawda? Chodź ze mną, bo ta historia jest dość długa"_

Neo took Nick by the hand and walked away with him to the personnel's room. At the same time Winter sat down on one of the high chairs and started to clean her cutlass. She was panting a little bit. After her breath calmed down, she took her Scroll out. She saw a text message from Weiss and swiped her finger on the screen to see it:

"I hope Nick isn't giving you too much trouble ;)"

The winky face at the end of the text confused Winter. How does her sister know Nick? And what's up with that emoji at the end? Is she flirting with him too? "That'd be weird" Winter thought to herself. After a while she texted her sister back:

"Not at all. He's like an angel…kinda ;)"

Winter felt weird after she sent that text with an emoji. She felt like she's acting childish. But fortunately at that moment Nick and Neo came back from the personnel room. Nick seemed very troubled and so did Neo:

-Let's go, Winter-he said- _"Dzięki, Neo"_

- _"Nie ma sprawy._ _Postaram się do was dołączyć jak tylko załatwię parę spraw w tej dzielnicy"_ -Neo replied

Winter and Nick walked out of the café, slightly rushing towards Haven:

-Nick, what did she say?-Schnee asked

-This is a much bigger problem we thought it was-Nick replied-it turns out Lahilla is back and they are responsible for all the madness happening in eastern district. What's worse, they're planning on taking over other districts after they completely obliterate the east. The White Fang and eastern mob are setting up a motorcycle race, where I'm supposed to meet a spy who will lead me further to Will's kidnapped friend

-Ironwood has a motorcycle, but keeps telling it's not his-Winter said-it surely doesn't look like his with all these skulls and metal elements on it

-Because it's not his motorcycle. It's mine-Nick said-I'm gonna travel to eastern Mistral for this race

-Lahilla is a threat too big for us to bother with Will for now-Winter said-take him with you to this race, maybe he will help you out. I'm gonna need to fill a report for my dad and Ironwood. Someone also has to inform Tromberg

When their conversation ended they were by the gates to Haven. Nick called Ironwood, told him about his plan and the general brought the motorcycle to the gate, talked to Nick for a bit and went back inside. Winter disappeared and later came back with cuffed William. She then took the cuffs off his hands:

-Nick, you made it!-Will said

-There's no time-Nick replied-we have a race to go for. Get on the bike, wait for me there

Will just nodded and got on Nick's motorcycle. The Hexman then walked up to Winter:

-Well…it was nice meeting you, Ice Queen-said Nick and was about to stretch his hand out when he suddenly felt as Winter jumps at him, hugging him

-Watch out for yourself out there, Hexman-she said-I've started to like you. If you got killed, I'd be sad

-I'll do my best-Nick said and hugged Winter back-now please let me go, I don't wanna waste more time

After that Nick sat on the driver seat of his motorcycle. Will was awkwardly grinning:

-You're hitting on her too?-Will asked

-Not your business-Nick replied and chuckled as his engine started roaring-but I gotta admit for an icy lady she's quite hot

-I know, right?-Will said and started to suddenly search for something-Nick, where do you have helmets?

-There are no helmets-Nick replied, smiling-not on this bike

After that Nick stepped on the gas and his creepy motorcycle drove off the parking in Haven with a loud roar, deep into the city of Mistral, towards the eastern district, where Will's friend was imprisoned and where Nick was going to show off his driving skills in a race…

(Dictionary from English to Polish, here named Gwynbleiddish:

"Kurwa mać!"-basic curse word literally meaning "Fucking shit!"

"Coś ty powiedział?"-"What did you say?"

"Ty mnie rozumiesz?"-„You understand what I'm saying?"

"Nie mam pojęcia skąd znasz Gwynbleiddzki ale lepiej gadaj i to szybko"-„I have no idea where did you learn to speak Gwynbleiddish but you better talk and be quick"

"Coś ty za jeden?"-"Who the hell are you?"

"Jestem Nicholas Van Thorne, ostatni Hexman Bractwa. Kim ty jesteś?"-„I'm Nicholas Van Thorne, last Hexman of The Brotherhood. Who are you?"

"Neapolitanka, ale wszyscy mówią na mnie Neo"-„Neopolitan, but everyone calls me Neo", „Neapol" means Naples in Polish

"Przysiądziesz się do nas?"-"Would you like to sit with us?"

"No powiedz coś"-"Come on, say something"

"Rozumiem. Tylko po prostu nie lubię sama gadać w tym języku"-„I understand but I just don't like speaking this language myself"

„Już sobie przypomniałam"-„Now I remember"

„Jesteś tym gościem który wczoraj wdał się w strzelaninę z gangiem"-„You're that guy who got into a shootout with the mob yesterday"

„Nawet jeśli to ja to co z tego?"-„Even if it was me then what about it?"

"Chyba wiem jakich informacji szukasz. Ten cyborg z którym przyszedłeś był we wschodnim Mistral gdy ja stamtąd uciekałam. Jeśli pracujesz dla niego, będziesz potrzebować mojej pomocy"-„I think I know what information you're looking for. That cyborg you came with was in eastern Mistral when I was running out of there. If you're working for him, you're gonna need my help"

"Serio chcesz walczyć parasolką?"-"You seriously wanna fight with an umbrella?"

"Zamknij się"-"Shut up"

"Nic ci nie jest?"-„Are you okay?"

„Dawno się tak dobrze nie czułam"-"It's been so long since I last felt this good"

„Chciałeś się czegoś dowiedzieć o wschodniej dzielnicy, prawda? Chodź ze mną, bo ta historia jest dość długa"-„You wanted to know more about the eastern district, right? Come with me, this story is a bit long"

"Dzięki, Neo"-"Thanks, Neo"

"Nie ma sprawy. Postaram się do was dołączyć jak tylko załatwię parę spraw w tej dzielnicy"-„Don't mention it. I'll try to join you as soon as I do my business in this district"

Well, that's the whole dictionary. I hope the idea isn't too confusing, my dear readers. Stay safe)


	11. Mistral drift

-AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!-William was screaming trying to keep the top hat on his head while Nick was driving like a maniac through surprisingly crowded streets of southern Mistral

-Stop screaming!-Van Thorne said loudly through the roaring of his engine

When they finally got to the border between southern and eastern Mistral, Nick slowed down. Will was breathing heavily, scared shitless. Van Thorne was slowly riding closer and closer to the gate. Two soldiers stood up from under a wooden wall which was supposed to be a border:

-Restricted area-said one of them-get out

-You always have to be an obstacle?-said Nick, giving them a menacing look from under his hat

-Are you deaf, dude? Get out!-the other one yelled

Van Thorne didn't say anything, he just stepped on the gas pedal. The motorcycle roared furiously and drove right into the wooden wall, making a hole in it. Will started to scream again:

-Hey, you idiot! Get back here!-yelled one of the guards after them-you'll pay for repairing this wall!

-Leave him be-said the other one-he's not coming back anyway if you know what I mean

Slowly after the roar that shattered the wooden wall Nick slowed down again. Now he was just riding through the almost empty streets of another isolated district in Mistral, casually looking around:

-Nick, why did you do this? Now we will probably be hunted by Mistral police

-What, you mean those guys? They didn't seem like ones from Mistral at all. Think about it. Since when does Mistral police wear tracksuits?

-I see what you mean...hey, look! There are people gathered around there. Maybe this is what we're looking for?

At that moment Nick noticed 3 figures coming towards them. One of them was hiding in shadows, but he immediately recognized the other 2. That black coat, slightly shorter than his, a mask covering his eyes, the sheathed blade in his hand...blood boiled in his veins. He stepped harder on the accelerator. The engine roared:

-What are you doing? Stop, you'll run these people over-Will tightened the grip of his hands on Nick's shoulders. He didn't want to care but then one of these familiar figures swung the sheathed blade, immediately transforming it into a pump-action shotgun. He aimed it at the Hexman

-I suggest you get off the bike-said Adam in an ominous voice

-Nick, who are these people?

-Stop calling us people, human! We're Faunus!-yelled the Lieutenant from behind Adam. His chainsaw was above his head

-Stop calling me human, Faunus! I'm a cyborg!-Will yelled back

-And if I don't?-asked Nick Adam, completely ignoring the quarrel Will and Lieutenant had

-I'll put a 20mm Dust round in your head. Heard you Hexmen die slowly. It would be painful to walk around with a shotgun shell in your forehead for 20 minutes before finally biting the dust, don't you think?

-In these 20 minutes I'd manage to run you over so hard you'd be turned into strawberry jam

-Reflexes of a Faunus are quicker than human's. I'd just jump a couple of times

-Hmpf-both Adam and Nick snorted. The Faunus corrected the mask on his eyes and smiled sneeringly

-You know, Taurus, I won't run you over for simple reasons. There's too many witnesses, there's the race...and because I'm just too polite when I want to be. Though one day I'm going to mess you up worse than you messed Yang up

-Oh...so you're murdering my people just because you're salty about some girl?

-This is no ordinary girl-Nick's eyes started burning-this is the girl I swore I'll protect forever. If you disrespect her, I'm afraid you'll have to die, Adam

-You seem to forget one major detail-Taurus raised his finger, stopping Nick from stepping on the gas pedal again-how much do you know about your great-grandfather, Nick?

Van Thorne's eyes almost popped out. "How the hell does he know about him?" he thought:

-Victor Gven'nel-said Taurus-that was his name, wasn't it?

-How the hell do you know about him?! It was long time ago!

-Did your father ever tell you why Mr. Gven'nel worked for us?-Adam took out a cigar from his pocket. The Lieutenant walked up to him with a lighter and lit it in his mouth

-The archives are silent about this...it's only mentioned that he abandoned the Schnee corporation and was spotted a couple of times among the White Fang ranks. Atlas considers him one of the biggest traitors in the history of mankind

-Your great-grandfather was not a traitor-Adam exhaled smoke from his mouth-he was simply betrayed. Schnee were doing those purges among their workers back when he was on duty. He was their next target so he escaped. And that's when my dad and I came in. Victor Gven'nel was rescued by us. He was the only human in the history of our organization to work for us. Think about it, Nick. Are you going to piss off your ancestor and run over the man who saved his life?

-Nick, he's manipulating you! Remember what he did to Yang? What he did to Blake?-Will said to stunned Van Thorne

-I would never exist if not for him, Will-Nick replied-Which means I would never love Yang if he wasn't there. I can't kill him

Adam grinned widely, happy that his plan was working:

-So, Van Thorne...you've come back to your senses?-he asked

-Here's my offer-Nick replied, a smirk appeared on his face-I will not take your life, but once the race ends I shall bring you to Haven and you will apologize directly to Yang and Blake...and break your own arm in front of them as punishment

-I'll...think this through-Adam said, shocked that Nick managed to outsmart him-have fun at the race

The 3 Faunus walked away, apparently not happy. Van Thorne and Vengh just casually proceeded slowly to the racing zone.

A lot of people were there. The crowd was huge, seemed like it was extremely hyped about this race. However, when Nick put his vehicle on the spot where the race was supposed to begin and he went with Will to check out the rest of the area, he was disappointed because he couldn't find Adam or Lieutenant anywhere. Soon they both found a small bar where they could settle down. However, soon they heard announcer calling from a distance:

-AAAAAALRIGHT MOTHERFUCKERS, 15 MINUTES TO THE ANNUAL "MISTRAL DRIFT" MOTORCYCLE RACE!

-Gotta go-Nick said, emptying his can of energy drink quickly and tossing the can into the trash-find something to keep you busy, it's a 5 lap race

Will looked to his right. Near him, a group of people were sitting and yelling at each other:

-20 thousand Liens number 21 wins!

-Idiot, he has an old model! It's clear number 37 has the biggest chance! Remember he was winning all the races so far! I bet 30 thousand Liens he wins!

-Oh yeah?! Then I bet 100 thousand Liens both number 21 and 37 will lose!

-DEAL!-both arguing men yelled at the third one

William smiled to himself. His cybernetic eye got brighter. As the 3 people were getting louder and louder he snuck up to them and took a place on a stool next to them:

-Well well, gentlemen...I see not only motorcycle races are a sport you're interested in-he said, not looking at them

-Eh?! Who are you? Are you a cop or something that you're saying that?!-One of the men yelled. He clearly was drunk

-No no no, nothing of such sort. I'm just a person who enjoys risk as much as you do

-The look from your eyes is weird...can you even be trusted?-said one of the gamblers

Will's cybernetic eye blinked for a second and looked around them all:

-Gentlemen, this eye is only a cause of a minor accident. This doesn't stop me from having fun. Anyway...let's instead talk about the game

-What do you offer?-asked one of the gamblers

-There is a new racer here. ID number 13. What do you wanna bet?

All the gamblers roared with laughter:

-I ain't gonna bet shit for an unknown racer, kid! Get lost!

-Prove it to me he's not worthy your money then-said Will and smirked

-What are you suggesting?

-I bet all the shit I have he'll win-said Vengh

-I bet all my Liens he's gonna lose miserably-said one of the gamblers and others confirmed they bet the same. After they said that, Will put a small piece of paper on the table:

-This is my private account number...in case I win-the cyborg's eye flashed menacingly

-Where do you think you're trying to put this fucking number?!-yelled Nick at a guy who tried to put a number stamp on the back of his motorcycle

-Sir, an ID number is required for you to stand out among other racers-replied the man with a sleepy voice

-But not here, damnit! I just polished it! Put it on the registration plate instead!

-Oh?-said the guy-I didn't see it at first, sorry

When the worker was putting an unlucky ID number 13 on Nick's motorcycle, the Hexman decided to smoke a cigarette before riding. He was looking at the moon, when he suddenly heard a voice next to him:

-Your lungs must already smell of smoke

-Yeah, well vaping just isn't for me-Van Thorne replied, not looking at the one who said that. When he tried to look at that person, he already disappeared

-Sir, you can take your bike to the starting line-said the worker

Once Nick entered the starting line on his bike, everyone else was there. Apart from him, however, they all had helmets, while Nick only wore his cowboy hat and sunglasses. Next to him stood another black motorcycle. Not a chopper like his, but still pretty stylish. The dude sitting on it had a dim shield on his helmet, so Nick couldn't see his face:

-We'll have to talk, Van Thorne-he suddenly said from behind that helmet

"That voice" Nick thought. "It's the dude from earlier. Who the fuck does he think he is? And how does he know my name? Probably just a coincidence. I gotta focus on winning instead".

As the signal to go was fired, Nick's feet were already on the gas pedal. As all the racers were picking up speed, Van Thorne dashed forward, his hat almost flying off his head. He could feel the other racers cursing him for burning his tire while doing this.

Van Thorne left everything behind as his chopper moved at a light speed through the tracks. At some point he slowed down and through the roaring of his engine he could hear the spectators yelling:

-Come on, 13! You're the best!

-13, your ride's engine makes me wet!

-Nick, you can do it!-yelled Will among them

-Slow down kid, your tires demand it, hehehe!-yelled the 3 gamblers William made a bet with

Nicholas looked at all the spectators from behind his sunglasses. He then smiled to himself, lit the cigarette he still had in his mouth with Igni and pressed a button on his motorcycle's radio. A popular hard rock tune started to play as he was leaving the whole crowd behind.

After around 15 minutes Nick was approaching the tunnel. It was a special isolated area of the racing track. In the tunnel, there were no rules, no lights and most importantly, no crowd. Suddenly Nick heard as the song in his radio silences due to another engine roaring next to him. He looked to his right and noticed the mysterious guy on a black motorcycle in a silver helmet:

-"Shoot to thrill"?-he asked for the song's title

-Fuck yeah!-yelled Nick back in response, making a typical horn gesture with his fingers

-I see you really have bad taste in music-laughed the guy as he and Nick entered the tunnel-slow down a bit. We need to talk

But then Nick turned around and saw two other racers getting closer to the tunnel, numbers 21 and 37:

-No way man! They are catching up to us!-said the Hexman pointing his finger behind him

-I said slow down! There are things more important than the race!

-I will NOT lose it because of you!-yelled Nick at the racer next to him

But the man on the motorcycle kept insisting. At some point he even drove near Nick and tried to press a handbrake on his steering wheel. That ultimately pissed Nick off. This man was asking for trouble. He then kicked the motorcycle of the other racer and took out the golden gun and started shooting in the guy's direction:

-What the hell are you doing?!-he yelled and then noticed his front wheel has a small hole in it. The motorcycle was about to crash. The Hexman hid the gun and focused on getting out of the tunnel. In the meantime the other racer's motorcycle was about to fall to the ground, but he was faster. With parkour precision he jumped on the steering wheel and from it dashed onto the ground, landing on his feet. The racers number 21 and 37 were unlucky enough to be near when the abandoned vehicle exploded. However, the racer who saved himself from this horrible death didn't seem to be bothered. He just took off his helmet, revealing short, spiky, gray hair on his head. He only smiled to himself and walked out of the tunnel on foot. Leaving it right behind him, he slowly walked under the barricade and snuck in the crowd, slowly backing off out of the racing area. When he made sure he is alone, he took out his scroll from the pocket, dialed a number and placed it against his ear:

-Yes?-an unknown female voice said after picking up the scroll from the other side

-I think…we're gonna be a bit late-replied the man with the gray hair

In the meantime, Nicholas decimated the rest of the racers. "Shoot to thrill" was playing with other hard rock and metal tracks on Nick's radio and this time nobody disturbed it during any lap. Nicholas was making a lot of crazy stunts on his motorcycle (like for example standing on the steering wheel while in air etc.). Every time he was jumping like that, he could hear and see as the crowd takes photos. The light of flashes from their scrolls and cameras was almost blinding him. The corpses of number 21 and 37 along with the 3 roasted motorcycles were lying in convenient places throughout the tunnel and other racers mistook them for obstacles set by organizers as an extra. During the last lap one of Nick's tricks landed him on top of the tunnel. While he was dashing through it, the crowd started taking photos and clapping their hands maniacally. The most cheerful among them was William, who was now sure he'll win the bet with 3 gamblers and 450 thousand Liens would land on his bank account.

As Nick's chopper jumped down from the top of the tunnel, other racers were just behind him. They almost ended up like number 21 and 37. When they saw Nick, they knew they failed. In the end, Van Thorne with the last push of the gas pedal synchronized with the last chord played on the last song on his radio crossed the finishing line and heard the ultimate crowd roar. They were constantly yelling out loud his racing ID-13. Soon he felt as he is being lifted in the air-the crowd was holding him in their hands. Nick felt like a surfer but instead of water there were people, his fans. He used to do a similar thing on concerts in Gwynbleidd but he never was the one surfing:

-Put me down! I still didn't take my ID stamp!

Someone from the crowd handed him the mentioned stamp. He needed it to claim the prize-a golden statue of a chopper.

After claiming it Nicholas came back to the bar where he and Will were before the race. He sat on a bar stool and ordered his favorite energy drink, as it was very late at night and he was feeling a bit sleepy.

Suddenly he heard as the doors are loudly opened and William rushes inside, laughing like a greedy banker who just won the lottery. In a heartbeat he ran up to Nick and sat on the stool next to him:

-Double vodka! We have a reason to celebrate tonight!-he said as the bartender was walking away to pour the drink into the glasses

-It's not that big of a deal you know-said Nick

-Maybe for you, but I have something that will blow your mind!

William took out his scroll, pressed a couple of buttons on it and showed Nick a huge number on its screen:

-See that? We won that from a bet!-said the cyborg

-You know I didn't win for you to get richer. I won because you wanted to find that friend of yours

-Yes, we will find Stephen in time. But first of all, why did we attend this race?

-My…new contact from the west said that we're to meet here someone who knows where Stephen is

-Interesting…who could that be?

Nick then started to think deeply…but when he realized the fact he facepalmed so hard he wobbled and fell off the chair:

-God. Fucking. Damnit. Ughhhhhh!-he groaned from the floor

-What's wrong?

-There was a guy on the race that wanted to talk to me but I thought he wants to win the race so I shot his bike! I probably killed him, I didn't look!

-You fucking retard!-screamed William and hit the counter with his fist. His cybernetic eye got black all of a sudden-because of your desire for that prize we might have killed our contact!

At that moment the doors to the bar opened and William spotted two buffed men coming inside. There was also a 3rd one which Vengh immediately recognized as one of the gamblers:

-There he is! He is the fraud! Get him!-yelled the gambler

The two goons rushed forward and were about to punch Vengh but he just jumped back. After that they both separated and only one of them charged. William parried his blow and with his clenched fist he punched him in the crotch. Because of "Stanley the exoskeleton" his punches were not normal and his fist got stuck inside in between the attacker's legs. He just screamed loudly. When the other one attacked him, Will just prepared his other fist with exoskeleton's energy and threw a hook punch right at his jaw. The lower side not only dislocated but actually went flying into the wall. William was clearly more pissed off than ever.

At that moment he quickly grabbed the gambler by his coat. His eye started to flash blue again. He shoved the gambler at the wall and blocked him with his hands:

-I'll put a safety lock on you so that you never think of a similar idea-he said with slightly changed voice

His eye fired a blue beam and started to drill a small hole in the gambler's forehead. Through his screams William carved with one huge burn wound a letter V in a circle on his forehead. The gambler fell onto the ground, still screaming in pain. The two goons were slowly bleeding out.

All this time Nick was lying on the floor, shocked to see his former friend become so murderous:

-Situation…under control…-mumbled William and gave a thumbs up before he fell onto the ground

-Willy!-yelled Nick as he was getting up and rushing up to him

Nick was rubbing his hands on William's face, trying to see if everything's alright

-I'm just…tired-he was mumbling with his eyes closed-stop…Nick…

The doors to the bar opened again. Nick heard 3 people walking in and ducking near him

-We'll take care of him. Just follow us, we'll get to our room in Mistral

Nick this time looked to his left. It was Adam. He and 2 other people were with him. One of them was of course the Lieutenant, the other one was a Faunus Nick didn't recognize. All he could see were little sideburns on his cheeks and a burgundy White Fang uniform instead of black, white and silver as others.

The Hexman followed the 3 Faunus. Lieutenant was holding the cyborg in his arms, while Adam and the other guy were walking with Nick right in front of the tall lieutenant:

-Why did you come to help me?-Nick asked

-2 reasons-Adam replied-first is that there is someone in our room who wants to desperately meet you. Second stands right to your left

Nick looked at the other Faunus who stood to his left:

-It was very rude of me to not introduce myself-he said and stretched out his hand-I'm Tukson, I'm in charge of the White Fang's archives

Nick shaked the Faunus' hand, slightly confused:

-I shall explain myself once we reach our base, Sir Van Thorne-said Tukson after a while

Nick decided to keep quiet for the rest of their journey. Adam was smoking a cigar and coughing while doing so. Every time Tukson was walking up to him and asking if he's alright.

It took almost an hour but Nick and the rest soon reached the room Adam mentioned. That's how the Faunus called a small shack on a hill. He explained that this is where he and the others reside for the time the eastern Mistral is controlled:

-We'll take the cyborg inside-he said and grabbed Nick by the shoulder-walk with me for a second here

Adam and Nick stayed near the door to the shack and when Tukson and the Lieutenant got inside, they both walked away towards a nearby tree:

-I really wish we met under different circumstances, Nick-said Adam after he was silent for a while

-So do I-Van Thorne replied

-You said that your girlfriend was wounded by me, right?-Adam stopped looking at Nick. Instead he was staring at the rest of the city district

-Wounded is an understatement. You cut off her arm to the elbow-said Nick almost yelling, pissed off Taurus was so calm about saying such stuff

-Instincts, Van Thorne. It's what you follow on the battlefield if you wanna survive. But you can't, can you?

-Not possible. I'd turn into a Cursed immediately

-Exactly my point. You, Hexmen, have knowledge that people don't possess. But what good is inhuman knowledge without human means to use it?

-You'd be surprised how we can handle such issues. For example, you hide your eyes from me behind that mask, you and the Lieutenant, because you're afraid of your victims to see fear and pity in your eyes. You cut off Yang's arm supposedly in cold blood and "instincts" as you say it, but those eyes hidden behind your face wear shelter eyes filled with grief

-I could cut you for that-Adam laughed and smiled

-We'd have to see who's quicker-Nick replied

-In eastern Mistral I wasn't

-What?

-The White Fang, despite what Tromberg implies, doesn't control the eastern Mistral. Not to mention local mobs, who were reduced to what you saw at the racing area

-By you?

-No, when we arrived they were already being exterminated. People who did this to them…compared to them, we are like maidens

-So you know about Lahilla around here. Tell me, do you know where do they keep the cyborg's friend?-Nick asked hoping actually Adam was his contact

-Friend?-Adam seemed confused-I thought you were the only one he had

-Wait, so you're not the contact?

-What contact? What are you talking about?-Adam was even more confused

Then they both heard footsteps that didn't belong to them near the shack. Adam and Nick turned around to see a man with spiky grey hair approaching them. He was wearing a grey jacket with a few armor pieces in the same color, black gloves and black pants:

-Mercury?-Adam seemed surprised-weren't you supposed to wait inside already? I gave you the key

-Things got slightly complicated-replied the newcomer, smirking the whole time. Nick immediately recognized his voice. He opened his mouth in shock

-But...I heard your motorcycle exploding...-Van Thorne mumbled

-Guess I'm going to miss it a little bit-replied the grey haired dude

-You two know each other?-Adam asked Nick, surprised again

-Of course we do. But before now we spoke very briefly-the stranger replied-I'm Mercury, by the way. Mercury Black

-Nicholas Van Thorne-the Hexman introduced himself

-I already know your name-Mercury laughed

-Look, if you're still pissed off about the motorcycle, when William wakes up I'll pay you its worth

-No need for that-Black replied-could we go inside for the rest of this chat? It's cold this night

-Good idea-Adam said and quickly walked past Nick and Mercury to the shack. He entered it and closed the door behind him

-Is he a poikilotherm?-Nick asked

-A poikilowhat?-Mercury seemed confused

-Does he freeze easily?-asked Nick in a more simple way

-Nah, it's just that he's not a fan of being surprised too much

-I can imagine why-Nick said

-Oh really?

-Let's get inside. I don't wish to talk about that-Nick wasn't in the mood to tell Mercury about him and Blake

When Van Thorne and Black entered the shack, they immediately felt warm from the fireplace in the room they landed in. It wasn't a one room shack as Adam referred to but a small, yet cozy house, with weak lights, wooden walls and floor. The room they were in was like a living room. The fireplace was giving light to a carpet and the back of a black sofa, which was set near an average TV set. Besides that, there were two armchairs by the fireplace, a wardrobe, a desk, two curtained windows and two doors. As Nick later explored the small house, one door led to the bathroom while the other one led to the sleeping room, where William was lying in the bed. When Nick came back to the living room, Adam and the Lieutenant were discussing something by the fireplace in their armchairs, Tukson was in the bathroom and Mercury was relaxing on the sofa, watching TV. Nick sat down next to him.

The TV was displaying the news programme hosted by Lisa Lavender, a beautiful news reporter with average length hair in the same color as her last name, shining amber eyes and very narrow lips which made her look surprised every time she was saying a sentence. She was speaking about an event which occurred in Mistral and about which Nick knew very well:

-The Mistral Riots, which blocked the entrance to the city for many days now, slowly fade away. After a sudden liberation of southern district from Haven Academy to the Dust Boulevard and the tragic death of vice principal Jonas Mikaelsen, headmistress of Haven, Helga Tromberg, who has been declared the regent of Mistral for as long as the council resides in Atlas, officially stated that her students, along with the now present at the scene Atlesian representatives, will offer amnesty to the protesting communists in West End. Back to you, Cyril-said the host

Then the mentioned voice could be heard as the screen showed photos from days when Tromberg's students desperately tried to hold the western district together by blocking demonstrating people. Nick looked at their transparents. They were mostly saying: "No more ruthless labor for the working class!", "Leadership belongs to proletariat!", "Stop the capitalist pigs!" and a picture of a snowflake being crushed by a red hand. All those demonstrators who didn't have the transparents carried red flags in their hands and were waving them in the air. While these photos were shown and a strap below said "West Mistral liberated?", the reporter Cyril Ian was giving the information:

-Thank you, Lisa. Right now the press conference of Haven's principal has ended but from what I found out at it not only are the communists free to use amnesty now but Jacques Schnee, also known as Harland Junior, who is among the Atlas representatives currently in Mistral, said that in the following days Haven and Atlas will cooperate to convince the Communist Front's First Secretary to lay down weapons and get rid of barricades which block the entrance to the West End. Atlesian general, James Ironwood, who transported to Mistral the remaining staff of the destroyed Beacon Academy in Vale commented that once West End stops their riots they will be able to get knowledge about what happens in the entirely isolated from our cameras Northern Hills.

The screen went back to Lavender:

-Thank you, Cyril. In other news, we just received reports, that...

At that moment Mercury switched off the TV with the remote:

-One more second and my head would explode from her annoying voice-he said

Nick was still looking at the switched off TV:

-Hey, you there?-Mercury said and waved his hand in front of Van Thorne's face

-Who is Jacques Schnee? Is he Winter's brother or what?-the Hexman said to himself

-You kidding? The guy's a main corporate rat of the world! And if you mean the icy bitch Winter then he's her father

-What? No no no, that was Harland Schnee, not Jacques

-You have the wrong information, Van Thorne-Mercury laughed-Harland is Jacques' father. That rat was doubted to be his father's successor by most of the workers so he started to call himself Harland Junior so that others are convinced. And they fucking bought that, bunch of idiots...

-Pfffft-Nick snorted as if he wanted to laugh

-Anyway, now that the purple cunt is silent...I have a message for you

-Is it about Stephen?-asked Nick, full of hope

-That too. Though I'd prefer if the cyborg was present on that. I have another message for your ears only

-What is it?

-My boss wishes to meet you, but when I asked for details I was just told that you'll meet in a right place at the right time

-Who is your boss? Mercury?-asked Nick, seeing that Black suddenly stands up from the sofa

Then they both heard as the toilet is flushed and Tukson walks out of the bathroom:

-Finally!-Mercury yelled and ran into the bathroom, slamming the door behind him. After a while both Nick and Tukson heard him pee.

The Faunus in burgundy uniform took a seat next to Van Thorne and looked him in the eyes:

-I owe you explanation. After all, Adam had to mention me as one of the reasons he helped you-he said

-An explanation wouldn't hurt, sure-Nick replied

-You see...a long time ago, I deserted from the White Fang. Mercury found me in my book store and I died by his hand. Ever since that happened I had hope one day I might escape from Dante...but soon all hope was lost. And then one day you came. Not only did you save me from the demons of the 3rd choir who were punishing me, but later, when you were negotiating with Dante, me and 3 other people managed to make the rift you left wide enough so that we could get away. You saved us, brought back to life, not even knowing that. When I got back, I immediately met up with the Lieutenant and offered my life back to the White Fang because you may cheat the afterlife, but not death. Thanks to you, I am where I am right now, and Torchwick too. I wanted to thank you for that and return the favor

-Who are the other two people who escaped with you?-asked Nick, shocked generally about what Tukson said

-I don't know, but they were females for sure-Tukson replied-by the way, what was your reason to go to Dante himself? Who is that girl you talked about?

-It's complicated-Nick replied and looked through one of the windows. It looked like it's about to rain. "I hope they are safe and not hunted" thought the Hexman.

Meanwhile, far beyond any living being's reach, deep in the realm of the underworld, where the lake of fire was the only source of light and the screams of its sinners were muffled by the constant singing of female souls, a hell minion left the fortress made of black brick. However, there was something weird about him. He was radiating with some weird dark magic. He lifted in the air and while levitating started to fly towards the island, where usually people who do the Necthro ritual land. The place was already full of other minions as well as demons from all choirs. They were walking around, burning the remains of their brothers and sisters who perished when the last mortal was escaping the underworld. At one point that dark minion ducked near the desecrated corpse of the fiery demon-the cruel general Malacoda:

-Oy, step yer feet away, eh? We about to bury that corpse-suddenly said one of the other minions

-Why should I step away from the corpse of my most trusted soldier?-said the dark minion. His voice sounded extremely dark. All hell knew that voice...and the other minion suddenly trembled

-L...L...Lord Dante!-he stuttered

-It's such a shame our dearest Malacoda had his fire extinguished...-said the ruler of hell

After these words Dante's vessel placed his hand on Malacoda's severed head's cheek:

-Poor little you, torn apart before your mission was complete...rise, my child. It is not yet your time. _Per Aspera Ad Inferi,_ my dearest Malacoda

Suddenly the former fiery demon's severed head opened its eyes. Soon Malacoda started to gain back his shape until he was complete and was back to what he was before Pyrrha massacred him. Dante's vessel just smiled sneeringly:

-For the task I have for you, you'll need a proper clothing-he said and snapped the vessel's fingers. Malacoda started to transform again, this time he turned into a human. He was wearing a black suit, red tie, a brown trench coat over it and had a walking stick in his hand. His head was decorated with a bowler hat and on his face spiky ears appeared, skin became white, horns disappeared, eyes became human but with red pupils, a crooked nose and a fancy moustache with a light beard replaced his demonical face. After that, he immediately kneeled:

-What is thy bidding, my master?-he asked

-Certain souls left our home, general-Dante replied-I send you and the Bedlam division to the surface so that you bring them back where they belong

-Is The Red Damsel among them?-Malacoda asked

-Yes, she is. You will have your revenge-Dante said and a devious grin appeared on his face

A little later Malacoda and a division of demons from the most feared kind were on their thunder steeds and galloped through the portal. Once the portal disappeared, Dante destroyed the vessel he was in and as a shadow he flew back to the fortress.

Malacoda and others soon were galloping in the air on their steeds. The hell army's resurrected general had his face almost torn apart by a wide, devious grin. The demons behind him were also pleased with a vision of capturing stray souls of pathetic mortals. The former fire demon was joyful to finally get the second chance to prove his superiority to other demons and please Dante. But to do that he needs to get back with souls that escaped, especially the one his head was focused on the most. The soul of a girl that caused him to be placed in that mortal vessel. The soul of Pyrrha Nikos...

("Per Aspera Ad Inferi", which means "Through hardships to hell", is a paraphrase of the well-known Latin phrase "Per Aspera Ad Astra", which means "Through hardships to the stars". It's also a song title of the Swedish metal band Ghost BC)


	12. The tower of terror

A lightning struck as the storm clouds started to approach the whole kingdom of Mistral. But while it was about to start raining there, far to the southern west, on a small island near the continent of Sanus, the night was peaceful. But that was soon going to be disturbed, as suddenly on the island a roaring of an engine could be heard. If you listened carefully, it didn't sound like one, but more like 3.

Three riders were dashing through the beach of the island on motorcycles. Nothing could be said about them, they were completely soaked in their black robes, while their heads were covered by black hoods. You could swear something menacing was radiating from them.

Those three figures turned their vehicles away from the beach and drove up a small hill, its top could be already seen. As all three motorcycles stopped and their drivers got off, they saw a yellow light in the distance going towards them. No matter the distance, the light illuminated them slightly, revealing some details about them.

Despite having their robes and hoods, their faces still could be seen. Two of these men had tanned skin, one of them was pale. One of the two tanned men had green eyes and a moustache while the second one had hazel eyes and a beard. Meanwhile, the pale guy had golden eyes, no facial hair and was grinning in a very creepy way. As the yellow light was getting closer, the tanned guy with green eyes said:

-Are you sure nobody followed us?

The other two guys just shaked their heads. The guy with the moustache then untied his robe:

-I guess we won't be needing these anymore then-he said and took his robe off. Underneath it was a dark blue overcoat with yellow linings, a black undercoat, a yellow dress shirt and a black necktie. He was also wearing brown fingerless gloves on his hands.

The other two also took off their robes. The other tanned guy had a gray and brown coat, a large belt, black pants and brown boots. The pale guy had a white sleeveless jacket with leather belts and white pants. He had purple bandages and leather vambraces on his arms and wore leather boots with knee guards. Meanwhile, the light was already so close the three men could see some shapes in it. They immediately recognized them and slightly nodded.

Malacoda descended from the sky on his thunder steed and landed on the ground. The Bedlam Division, a group of 12 demons with skeletal appearance known for their bloodthirsty behavior, was still dashing through the sky but was slowly proceeding to land on another part of the island. Malacoda got off his steed. He was disguised:

-All hail the new general!-the 3 men yelled and saluted

-Fools, it's me-Malacoda replied and changed into his fire form

-Awwwwww-the pale guy groaned, disappointed

-You have a problem with that, Tyrian?-asked Malacoda the pale guy once he switched back to his disguise

-Nah, no problem at all. It's just that I miss the times when every demon general that was coming to the surface was immediately hunted down and destroyed by Gwynbleidd's forces. When that was happening, we were always greeting more generals. Now that's not happening and it's just…different

-So you wish I was dead?-Malacoda stared at the one called Tyrian menacingly

-Good job, asshole-said the dude with hazel eyes and gave a half-smile

-Don't give yourself too much credit, Hazel-Malacoda turned his sight at him-you aren't innocent yourself

-Well, anyway-the 3rd guy walked up closer to Malacoda. He stretched his hand out to him. He seemed happy about meeting him-It's a pleasure to see you once again, general. We feel much honored to serve the Lord yet again

-You can spare me your regards, doctor Watts-Malacoda replied, not shaking the man's hand-What brings me here is of much bigger concern

-Well, we sure are glad to know what task did the Lord give you-Watts replied-maybe you could share some of it with us?

-Once we get over the formalities-Malacoda replied and pointed his walking stick at all the three men, grinning-you were responsible for retrieving the artifact. I trust your "little theft" as you said went well, didn't it?

-Of course!-Tyrian said with joy in his voice and suddenly a scorpion stinger emerged from behind his back. A strange cane was held by it. It had a silver handle, yet the rest of it was entirely black. The handle was the weird part about it. Once Tyrian took it in his hands, he gave it to Malacoda in a ceremonial gesture. The demon general took it in his hands:

-At last-he said quietly and hit the ground with the cane. Its handle shattered into pieces, revealing a hole in the rest of it, as if it was a pipe. Malacoda looked inside…but after a while his eyes started burning and he tossed what was left of the cane right in Tyrian's face. It hit the scorpion Faunus and he let out a groan from pain:

-Is this some sort of a disgraceful human prank?!-he yelled

-I did nothing wrong…-Tyrian yelped

-You're bringing a counterfeit of the most important to your cause relic and you expect to be patted on the head for "good efforts"?!-Malacoda yelled again. He clearly was enraged. His disguised skin started to let out small streams of smoke

-I swear I had nothing to do with replacing the relic, general! I live to serve the one and only Lord and his Chosen Virgin-Tyrian was saying, while trying to get back on his feet after he fell from being hit in the face with the cane

-That's true, I can vouch for him-Watts stepped in, trying to calm down the hell general-The cane wasn't in possession of the principal anymore

-Excuse you?-said Malacoda-if it wasn't the wizard who had the cane then who the fuck was that?!

-Hazel, if you may-said the doctor and snapped his fingers, giving signal to the guy with hazel eyes

-It was Qrow Branwen who had the cane, general-he said

-So…some pathetic mortal was in possession of the most important artifact?

-Not quite-Hazel continued-This mortal is one of the most dangerous huntsmen in existence. He's almost as powerful as…

-Hexmen?-Malacoda smirked while interrupting the muscular man

-Yeah, I was just about to say that. Anyway, Branwen and his close friends were leading the "rescue team" in Gwynbleidd after the purification. You probably know that it was an action that only worsened the conditions in the already ruined town

-Not to mention he is a filthy spy-Watts added-he can disguise himself as a bird of the night but as if that wasn't enough it is said his presence means bad luck. Some say it's his "semblance"

Malacoda raised his eyebrow in confusion and pointed his cane in the sky with one hand. A fire ball left it and flew up the sky. Some seconds later something hit the ground between the demon general and the 3 men. It was a burned carcass of a black bird but it wasn't morphing back to a human form:

-Guess he's not spying on us now-said Malacoda, disappointed he didn't actually kill Qrow-anyway, what do you plan to do next to fulfill the Lord's will?

-We shall relentlessly hunt the wizard, as we promised-said Watts, bowing slowly to Malacoda

-That's not what you promised, that's what you were told to do. Your marks will make sure you are rewarded or punished. Only the Lord's mark can change your fate. That semblance of bad luck, which that Qrow supposedly possesses, will not stand in your way and you aren't allowed to believe that it does

-As you wish, general-Said the 3 men at the same time

-Now, as you saw earlier, I have the good old Bedlam division with me today on the surface. Can you guess why?

-The Lord wants to have another tomb built?-Tyrian asked

-I wish it was that-Malacoda replied-but the purpose is more urgent. Watts, Tyrian, Hazel…the domain was invaded

-No way!-Tyrian almost yelled

-Only one sort of mortals would dare invade hell itself after paradise was lost-Watts said

-Weren't they supposed to be extinct?-asked Hazel

-Apparently they're not-Malacoda replied-some of them are still out there and one of such kind broke into hell alive, killed a dozen of our choir members, stole The Eye Of Existence, threatened the lord himself and freed 5 souls which resulted in me wearing this horrible disguise

-Well you have to admit it, that lit form didn't suit you that well-said Tyrian with a disturbing smile

In a blink of an eye Malacoda dashed towards the scorpion Faunus and smacked him across the face with his cane:

-Ow! Take a joke, asshole!-he yelled after he stopped feeling the pain

-I'll pretend I didn't hear that-said Malacoda and turned his back on the 3 men-now I must take my leave. The longer these stray souls walk the surface, the bigger the danger we're in. You, on the other hand, do what you were doing so far. Find the relic

After these words Malacoda raised his hand in the air and his thunder steed emerged from the darkness, landing slowly next to him. The hell general quickly jumped on its back and rode off the hill on the island and in the air, with the whole Bedlam division following him, he galloped through the night to the northern east. Watts, Tyrian and Hazel stood a little longer on the hill and after that they got back on their motorcycles back in their black robes and drove off the cliff and started dashing in the air towards Sanus.

Meanwhile, in Mistral, while Nicholas Van Thorne and William Vengh sat in a cozy shack with White Fang's main authorities and their contact, Mercury Black, a conflict was escalating in Haven.

Jacques, Winter and Weiss Schnee were walking around the room that was Tromberg's office. They seemed nervous:

-Are you absolutely sure this is what that Hexman said?-Jacques walked up to his older daughter and asked

-Yes! I know how surreal this sounds but it's real!-Winter said in response

-Can somebody explain to me what Lahilla is?!-Weiss yelled, clearly pissed off she wasn't getting any attention

-Young lady, keep your voice down-Jacques told her in a cold tone

-No, dad, I think she should at least know what her friend is up against-Winter said, trying to calm down the situation

-Ok, but you better tell her only truth

-Weiss?-Winter called her younger sister

-Hm?-Weiss mumbled

-Walk with me for a second-Winter said and walked with her sister out of the room. They decided to take a little walk on the corridor

-Weiss…you remember when we were at Mantle?

-Well…yeah, but what does it have to do with anything?

-What you learned at history lessons in Beacon wasn't everything. There is a darker part in the history of our kingdom and it's connected to Mantle. All the history books on that were destroyed and the ones that survived feed lies about that period

-But what happened, Winter?

-Shortly after The Great War was finished, all our kingdoms wanted peace, stability and prosperity. All except for Mantle. A bunch of former soldiers who were aiding Mistral formed a secret political syndicate with their own goals. Unite Remnant by force, purge the Faunus and drive out the Grimm. They were the reason people started to discriminate the Faunus. And when the White Fang was formed, they started to provoke them to prove they are not a peaceful organization. They named themselves "Lahilla" as in their own cipher it means "Godlike", and for their symbol they chose an inverted cross, because it looked like a sword to them. And all because they didn't like Mantle as a part of Atlas. They soon spread out to other continents, aiding settlements in rebellion against the councils, considering them false, and themselves as the true council. A lot of politicians were aiding them, thus representing them at the councils' meetings. They were arrogant, full of disdain for others and they completely had no empathy towards anyone, kinda like our dad, only a million times worse. Ever since I returned from my little meeting with your Hexman I know that not only did Lahilla cause so many uprisings, but they were responsible for the destruction of Gwynbleidd as well. They are the reason why that hated by you bodyguard of ours, William, is a cyborg

-You know…I highly doubt there is someone worse than our dad, Winter

-Weiss-Winter looked at her sister with sad eyes-I think it's time I take you to the café I was in with Nick. It's a very nostalgic place and I'd like to tell you about what was happening back when I was slightly younger than you.

Thus the Schnee sisters left Haven and went towards the western district, where Winter was planning to show Weiss "The Informatory". In the meantime, Jacques Schnee let more people into the room he was in. Among them were general Ironwood, Glynda Goodwitch accompanied by Tromberg, Peter Port, Bartholomew Oobleck and two other people that seemed like they are from Atlas. One of them was a very young boy with short white hair and pale blue eyes, who looked almost like a childish version of Jacques (without the moustache), but much shorter. The other guy was an average height, slightly overweight man with balding brown hair and a large moustache. He was assisting the young boy who got into the room before him:

-I'm glad you're here, everyone-said Jacques as he was taking a seat behind Tromberg's desk-please, find yourself something to sit on

Everyone started to drag numerous armchairs that were in the office closer to the desk of Haven's headmistress. But when the boy with white hair and the man with brown moustache tried to pull their armchair the old Schnee stopped them:

-Whitley, Klein. You both sit next to me

When the two Atlesian guys called out by Jacques sat on small chairs on both sides of the big armchair the old Schnee sat on, he started a conversation:

-As you probably know, Mistral has a problem with riots. Thanks to intel gathered by my older daughter we have information about what is happening in the east. Those are not good news. I'm afraid we are dealing with Lahilla here

-The inverted cross? But like…they were supposed to be on a long hiatus until they find a new leader…-said Tromberg

-Yeah, and we were making sure they never find a new leader-added Ironwood

-But it seems they did-Jacques seemed unhappy with what he said-He's operating from the shadows and until we know who that is we call him The Masked Fox. Why, you ask? Well, the answer sits right next to me.

The old Schnee gently pushed the boy with the white hair:

-Everybody, this is my youngest child as well as my only son, Whitley. He managed to get a lot of intel on Lahilla too and he did that by simply becoming friends with my former bodyguard, William Vengh. Whitley, my son, tell everyone what you learned

-Well...-Jacques' son started. His voice immediately annoyed everyone inside, including Ironwood, Klein and Jacques himself. That's how full of arrogance it was-I do know for sure that it was The Masked Fox who led Lahilla's attack on Gwynbleidd. Unfortunately, Vengh managed to outsmart me on time, preventing me from finding out the mysterious leader's name. But there is much more. It turns out it wasn't only Lahilla who was shooting in Gwynbleidd. William told me he noticed a Hexman, who was actually backstabbing his brothers and sisters. I don't know his name either, but I know he is even more dangerous than The Masked Fox himself. I hate to admit it, but the Hexman that currently resides in eastern district of Mistral, that...Nick, was it? He might need our help

-Whitley, cover your ears, please-Jacques suddenly whispered to him after that monologue

-Why?

-Just do that, please

Jacques' son covered his ears. The old Schnee stood up from his seat:

-WHERE THE FUCK IS QROW?!-he suddenly yelled. Everyone in the room shivered

Suddenly the doors slightly opened and the called man peeked from behind them:

-You rang?-he asked

-You're late as always-Jacques said with disdain in his voice

-I deeply apologize for such offense to you, supreme commander-answered Qrow with a sarcasm-I was attending to an unexpected guest who just landed in Haven. Hey! You can come in now!

Qrow opened the door wider and walked in. Another man followed him inside. Seeing him left Glynda speechless for a second:

-Taiyang?-she stuttered after the awkward silence began to irritate her

-I heard my daughters are here. I came to take them home-said the father of Ruby and Yang

-Tai, I don't think that's possible. The girls both grew very attached to Van Thorne

-They did?-Taiyang seemed surprised

Suddenly fast footsteps could be heard on the corridor from inside the room. The door opened again. An Atlesian Captain in a navy suit ran inside:

-Sir! I have something very important to tell you, can I?

-Go on, soldier-Ironwood replied. Jacques looked at him. He seemed jealous

-One of our ships was stolen. We noticed young Schnees in it along with some Haven and Beacon students. They were flying towards the Busy Precinct. We tried to stop them. Which brings me to my next message. We located Lahilla's hideout in the east. They set up their main base at...

-The Mistral's CCT tower?-William asked Mercury when he pointed at the biggest skyscraper in the eastern district through the window-are you sure this is where they hide?

-Well, duh. If they control this tower then they prevent communications, so Mistral is unable to send official statements to other kingdoms. Atlesian representatives and the Schnees knew they had to come here only because of a private network. We'd do this city a big favor if we kicked these scumbags out of there

-Then what are we waiting for?!-Nick asked

-There is one problem-Adam interfered-They really set up a fortress in there. Soldiers are everywhere and they are no longer what they used to be. No more silver tunics and swords. Now Lahilla uses the latest model of anti-radiation uniforms, made from a strange, light material even more durable than the armors of Atlesian paladins. They all cover their faces with gas masks and patrol the area at night with red flashlights. They use semi-automatic rifles from Vacuo, which use red Dust.

-It's not a problem, but a test-Nick said and raised his finger near Adam's face-Lahilla knows we are near, because CCT towers usually can also control private networks. It seems Tromberg was right...

-Tromberg? Has she ever been right about anything?-laughed Mercury

-The Masked Fox is here!-Nick interrupted him-The bastard that aided the murderer of my mum and dad is hiding there, in this tower! He knew that chaos in Mistral will cause Tromberg to look for help outside, but they must have controlled the network earlier, because she said she never heard that Vale had a Grimm outbreak. She couldn't look for help in Atlas, because they'd then claim Mistral for themselves, Vacuo was experiencing a sandstorm...so she came to Vale...

-So, that Masked Fox guy planned it all from the beginning? To lure you to Mistral? But how would he know you were in Vale or alive?

-That I have to ask him myself-said Nick and took out keys to his motorcycle from the pocket of his coat. He then ran to the doors. William ran after him

After a while Nick was sitting on his motorcycle near the former racing area and was checking the engine. William barely caught up with him:

-Nick, you are not thinking reasonable! We have no chance against an entire battalion of armed to teeth fanatics!

-Who said "we", William?-Nick gave him a hard look-I am going there myself, alone

-Oh no no no, you are not!-said William and grabbed Nick by his arm

-Give me one good reason!-Van Thorne yelled

-I have my own issues with The Masked Fox!

-What?-Nick was shocked-You...you never told me

-Allow me to refresh your memory then-William replied-You remember Jenny, right?

-Yeah, that girl you proposed to. The one from the inn

-And you've seen The Masked Fox with his goons by the Tinsel that night, right?

-Yes, they were throwing some heavy sacks into it...oh dear...William...

-This is why I don't want you to go alone. The Masked Fox murdered Jenny and now holds Stephen hostage, thinking he can toy with lives of others as he pleases. I made an oath to myself that one day I will rip his heart out

Suddenly both Nick and William heard slow clapping several meters away from them:

-Wonderful! You guys have motivation! Nick searches for answers, William for vengeance, we search for freedom-Van Thorne looked to his right only to see Adam, Lieutenant, Tukson and Mercury coming in their direction

-Taurus, this is no longer your fight!-said the Hexman

-Oh but of course it is! We didn't risk our lives for useless information, we also want to use it ourselves-said Mercury, grinning widely

-I guess you're unstoppable?-Nick sighed in defeat

Everyone just nodded in response. Nick sighed again:

-Alright, I'll just switch into the hotrod mode and we can go

When Van Thorne's motorcycle switched into the hotrod, everyone suddenly saw a problem:

-Uhhhhhh...there are just 4 seats and 6 of us. How are we even gonna fit in?-said Mercury

-Somehow we'll stuff 3 people in the back-Nick replied-but for the 6th person...hmmmmmmm...maybe in the trunk?

-Oh I am not going for sure!-William immediately said and jumped on a seat next to Nick's driver seat, where Yang once sat when Nick was flying back to Beacon

-Me neither!-Adam and Mercury said at the same time and jumped on the back seats

-Well...I guess we have to rock, paper, scissors it, Tukson-said the Lieutenant to the Faunus in burgundy uniform

-No need for that-laughed the other one-I'll go there. You wouldn't fit in

Lieutenant jumped in the back seat and sat next to Adam, while Tukson slowly crawled into the trunk. When he closed it, Nick started the engine.

-Everyone, hold onto something! I never installed seatbelts on this thing anyway-he said and grinned

William closed his eyes and sighed:

-I'm never-he said-I'm never riding a car with you again

As Nicholas was driving the hotrod towards the Mistral's CCT tower, they had no idea they are being followed by two Atlesian ships in the distance.

The soldiers of Lahilla stood by the solid entrance to the tower. Just like Adam said, they were heavily armed. Their anti-radiation, coat-like uniforms were waving slowly in the wind of the night. As it started raining, they pulled hoods over their heads and pointed their guns forward. They could hear roaring of an engine in the distance.

And then...it stopped. One of the soldiers looked at the one next to him, confused:

-Odd, isn't it?-he said

-What?-said the other one

-I could swear I just heard a car nearby

-Probably just a thunder

-Probably...hey, why are the boys from Downs' company coming here? They were supposed to stand by the roadblock

Indeed, a group of 6 soldiers in same outfits as theirs were coming in their direction. One of the soldiers by the entrance stepped forward:

-Guys, why did you leave the outpost? What's wrong?

But suddenly one of the soldiers, who was going in the front stretched his arm forward and a gun appeared in his hand. He immediately fired a bullet, killing one of the soldiers. No sound could be heard as the gun had a silencer. The other soldier only saw the golden glow from it when he suddenly got shot too, but by some other attacker who had a silenced rifle in his hands.

There were only 2 guards by the sealed doors but the disguised Nick and his company knew more will come. Then, suddenly, they heard familiar whirr in the air. When they raised their heads they saw as an Atlesian ship comes in their direction:

-Damnit, they already tracked us down?-said Mercury through his gas mask

-It came from Haven. They're not going to hurt us. Just stay back and let me do the talking-Nick quickly said to Mercury

The ship landed slowly near Nick and his group's position. The gate opened quickly and when Van Thorne was just about to hear people coming out of it, he suddenly heard a scream:

-Die, Lahillan scum!-and at that moment he saw as a group of people jumps out and charges in their direction. Nick had to act quick before anyone could get hurt. He then recognized the shapes that were rushing into them and raised his hands.

-Stop! Stop!-he yelled just in time as Yang's fist was almost at his nose

The gold-haired girl stood right in front of him. She seemed enraged, yet confused after what she heard. Nick's mood immediately changed. From his desire to catch The Masked Fox he suddenly felt as his heart starts beating faster. His beloved was standing in front of him, fire in her eyes, trying to punch him. "What a grotesque situation" he thought to himself as he was taking off his mask. After that instead of a black gas mask with red lights in eyes Yang saw the pale pink, handsome face of her boyfriend, his dark brown hair getting back into its normal shape. After she saw that, her confusion immediately turned into joy. Her clenched fist moved away...and then Nick immediately felt as he's being pinned down to the ground. Yang was squeezing him in a hug, but Van Thorne didn't feel the pain as he was so happy to see the blonde girl again he wanted to squeeze her just like she did him.

But Yang wasn't the only one who came. Nick managed to see that from the ship also emerge Jaune, Nora, Pyrrha, Ren, Ruby, Weiss, Blake, the entire teams SSSN and ABRN as well as Winter, Torchwick, Junior and the Malachite sisters. They all were here for him, so late at night, already soaked in the rain (not to mention Yang who started sneezing while hugging Van Thorne):

-I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you!-she just kept repeating while rubbing her face in Nick's chest

Ruby and Weiss then sighed both at the same time:

-To think she once told me she'll never have a boyfriend-said the silver-eyed girl. She seemed slightly jealous

But then suddenly a group of Lahilla's soldiers ran out of the gate. Because Nick and Yang were the nearest targets they immediately aimed at them their rifles. Suddenly one of the soldiers was kicked back a bit. Ruby stood a few meters away. In her hands she held a big, red gun, which looked like a sniper rifle. As the Lahilla's soldiers now focused on her instead and started to rush towards her, Yang jumped off Nick and joined the fight. William and others looked in awe as 3 soldiers die by hands of Melanie's heels, Miltia's claws and Junior's bat. Somewhere else team ABRN had small problems with defeating a group of 5 soldiers, but Reese suddenly transformed her hoverboard into dual wielded laser pistols. They shone bright blue, implying their bullets will stun. So Reese did by shooting up all 5 men in black gas masks. Once she did that, she knocked one down by turning both pistols back into the hoverboard and smacking him across the face with it, Arslan started to strangle her enemy with her rope, Bolin was breaking the man's defense by constantly smacking his gun with his staff and Nadir was turning his rifle into a blade, which he would use to ultimately defeat his opponent.

Sun and his friends seemed to be enjoying their fight. As Sun's nunchaku shotguns were obliterating soldiers surrounding him, Scarlet and Sage were slashing their enemies with their swords. Neptune, on the other hand, wasn't doing as great. Of course, Lahilla's goons were no match for him but from time to time he was unintentionally letting them take a shot very close to him. It seemed as if the rain was distracting him.

Team RWBY fought separately, as well as JNPR. Even Jaune fought his opponent alone, keeping up with the fight pretty well. At some point Blake was teaming up with Roman. This gave Adam, Mercury and the Lieutenant an idea:

-Nick, you and Will infiltrate the tower. We're gonna join the fun-said Adam

-Got it-Nick replied and ran with William inside. A couple of soldiers passed them, too much in a hurry to notice both Van Thorne and Vengh don't wear their masks anymore. On time, because another Atlesian ship reached the CCT tower and from it jumped out an Atlesian Captain, who was accompanied by Ironwood, Jacques Schnee who held a weirdly shaped gun in his hand, Whitley, Klein, Glynda, Oobleck, Port, Qrow and even Taiyang. Branwen took out his giant sword while Xiao Long suddenly had his hand covered by some glove with yellow lightning surrounding it. The Atlesian Captain took out a standard rifle of his homeland, Ironwood took out his revolver, Oobleck extended his thermos, Port took out his axe, Whitley already was waving his rapier, Klein seemed to have a similar one in his hand and Glynda took out her crop...and her eyes seemed like they burn. The soldiers of Lahilla seemed to be both enraged and terrified. They expected to see the old Schnee trying to get them, but that blonde woman with green eyes was almost turning them into cowards.

As Glynda and others were about to drown Lahilla's soldiers in their own blood, Nick and William reached the elevator on the first floor. As they reached it, they heard as more of these voices come from the outside:

-Did more people come to fight Lahilla?-William asked

-I don't think so. Would regular citizens of Mistral come in an Atlesian ship?

-The fuck?! Another Atlesian ship came?! Dude, if the Schnees find out about Adam and Merc we're gonna be in trouble...AGAIN!-the last word William said particularly loud

-Alright, let's split up then. I'll go and watch Adam and the rest from getting arrested, you go to the top floor, find that motherfucker but don't kill him yet!

-Understood-William said and walked into the elevator-by the way, Nick. You know what?

-What?-Van Thorne asked impatiently

-You'd be a great leader...if Gwynbleidd was still out there

"I'll be the leader one day. Once I get this son of a bitch" Nick thought to himself as he responded to William with just a half-smile. Then the door to the elevator shut and Van Thorne started walking towards the exit from the tower when suddenly:

-NOOOOOOOOOOOO! YOU WILL GO WITH WILL!-screamed a voice in Nick's head. He already recognized it too well

-You're not making me obey you, fiend!

-HE IS CLOSE...HE IS CLOSE...YOU GO...KILL THE FOX IN THE MASK!-screamed the voice again

-" _NIE!"_ -Nick suddenly yelled in Gwynbleiddish and leaned on a wall, shoving his forehead into it

-YOUR PROFANITY OF OUR PRIMORDIAL LANGUAGE IS A DISGRACE! YOU HUMILIATE YOUR ANCESTORS!-laughed the voice

-Father, protect me from the Darkness-Nick whispered

-THIS TIME THERE IS NO GLOWSHROOM EXTRACT TO SAVE YOU!-the voice yelled and started to do the same thing to Nick as it did near Pyrrha's room. Nick's limbs suddenly started to disobey him, his vision started to turn red. The fiend somehow managed to make Nick's fingers snap and his hands started glowing with silver runes of Axii. The hand was going right for Van Thorne's forehead. With the last bits of strength in his other arm Nick tried to stop his fingers from reaching closer to his brain. It seemed as if all hope is lost as his other arm didn't even think about moving. But then suddenly he heard a screech of the fiend and then heard a different voice, which belonged to a female:

-Quick, Nicholas! I'll hold him off as long as I can but you need to take the Glowshroom to function. You should still have some of it. Do you?

Nick was utterly confused as he never heard this female voice before in his head. It sounded familiar, yet Van Thorne couldn't recognize it. Instinctively he took out next vial of the green goo (aka the Glowshroom extract) and drank it:

-NOOOOOOOOOOO! MY PRIZE WILL NOT...GHAAAAAAAA!-the voice screeched and faded away yet again

"I'm saved" Nick thought to himself as he was sliding across the wall to the floor, sitting down. He could hardly breathe, almost passing out. His forehead was soaked in sweat and pupils of his eyes got wider.

But after about 5 minutes of this rest the Hexman felt stronger, as the side effects of the extract started to work. Using that potion members of The Brotherhood become immune to their biggest weakness-the red Dust. Usually it depends on how ripe is the Glowshroom, but in average such extract gives invulnerability to this type of Dust for about 10 to 15 minutes. As Nick felt the effects of the potion he walked up to the door and grabbed a hold of his weapons, confident he's gonna take out the entire army of modern Lahillan soldiers in such state. But unfortunately when he went through the door most of the fun was coming to an end.

The first person to notice him was Reese as she drove next to him on her hoverboard:

-Something's up with the tower?-she asked

-No, I just came in to check how things are-Nick replied

He then saw Adam, Lieutenant, Mercury and Tukson fighting. They no longer wore their disguises. What was weirder, though, was the way they decided to provoke the nearby adults. Adam was right next to Yang, covering her from attacks from behind (which at first made Nick tighten the grip on his sword), Lieutenant was lifting Weiss in the air so that she could strike down a soldier with a vicious blow and Ruby seemed as if she already was with Mercury on a team before. But then Nick noticed the most shocking thing of this battlefield. Right where the 2nd ship was all the adults were about to put their weapons down, except for Glynda. She was lying on top of some Lahillan soldier, restraining him, and not caring about what was happening around her, she was trashing his face with her fists. That was really bizarre to Nick as his aunt's hands didn't seem like ones that could keep smashing a gasmask in a dude's face and make blood almost gush on her glasses. Near this stood the Schnees, Klein and the Captain. Even Jacques seemed shocked about what he was seeing. Nick then started rushing towards them as Reese drove back to her team, who was fighting off a new group of soldiers:

-I. Will. Fucking. Destroy. You!-Glynda kept screaming through her clenched teeth as her fists started to turn the soldier's face into a pulp. Her rage seemed to be mixed with desperation. As she kept doing that Nick approached Jacques, Whitley and Klein:

-What has gotten into her?-Van Thorne asked

-I think it's some kind of relief for her, but it's the 15th time she's trashing a soldier of Lahilla like that. If she keeps doing that she's gonna pass out from the lack of aura-said Jacques

At that moment Whitley, Klein and the Captain looked in Van Thorne's direction:

-Nick, meet my youngest son, Whitley, and my butler, Klein Sieben. That guy with brown skin over there is one of Ironwood's captains-because Jacques pointed his finger at him, the captain approached the Schnees and Van Thorne closer and stretched his hand out:

-My name's Jeff Halla-he introduced himself and shook Van Thorne's hand, smiling nervously-pleasure to meet you

-Same here-replied Nick

-Now, where the fuck did you imprison Nick, hm?!-Glynda suddenly yelled. Nick, hearing his name, looked in her direction. Suddenly something even weirder happened, because the soldier of Lahilla turned out to still be a bit alive and even though his gas mask was deformed from punches and the glass was in his eyes, he slowly raised his finger and pointed it right at Nick. Goodwitch then turned to her left and noticed her nephew. Their eyes met and she felt embarrassed. Then the soldier who was getting beaten up by her suddenly tried to throw a last punch in Glynda, but then a gunshot could be heard. It was Nick's gun. It fired a bullet that blew the soldier's brains out, spraying all over the asphalt. Glynda then got off him finally and walked up to her nephew, who still stood with the Schnees. At the end she wobbled and almost fell to the ground, so Nick immediately caught her and lifted back to her feet:

-I know what you must think of me right now. You think I'm way too over-protective and I understand that. Please Nick, don't get mad at me about that. I was just worried about you. You didn't give me any sign from Haven and I was already worried to the point I asked Ironwood to bring the military to Vale. They came in, took the frozen dragon on their cargo ship, took us on a regular one and transported us here. During the journey we found out the Schnees were on the ship and were going to catch their former bodyguard to force him to reveal where the Masked Fox is and...

-Shhhhhh-Nick suddenly silenced her and took her by the hands-You've really grazed your knuckles fighting all these soldiers. Are you gonna be fine?

-Yeah, I just...need some rest...aura will do the rest of the work-said Glynda, slowly panting

-Take her someplace safe. I need to get back there to the tower-Nick said to Jacques

Meanwhile, as Nick was still experiencing the shock of seeing his aunt getting so violent, William finally reached the top floor. The doors to the elevator opened and he left it. The narrow corridor in front of him had 2 directions. William could either go left or right, as apparently the elevator was opening in the middle of this floor. After thinking for a while William took out his gun and the staff and ran to the left. After a while he reached a door. It led to a room full of computers, which people usually go to when using the CCT towers. Suddenly, he noticed a shape sitting by one of the computers. It didn't move but just to be sure Vengh aimed his gun forward:

-Move an inch and you'll paint this computer red-he said

-Your memory started to give you a hard time, William?-said the unknown figure by the computer

William shuddered hearing someone mentioning his name. Suddenly he realized, whose voice was it. Even the general looks of that person started to come back into his mind:

-No...No...It can't be...-mumbled the cyborg in a top hat

At that moment the swivel chair the unknown man was sitting on turned around and William saw a man he remembered deep back from his past, but still after what happened in Gwynbleidd.

It was a tall, skinny old man with a cybernetic eye, just like William, but his was glowing red. He had disheveled gray hair, a matching moustache and beard, and prominent eyebrows. Apart from the eye, he also had a cybernetic right arm with red inner circuits. He was wearing a gray jacket with a high collar, a red shirt underneath it, black pants and boots. His jacket had a small letter "M" put in a hexagon tattooed near where his heart was. He then smiled nicely at William, though it seemed a bit creepy:

-Merlot?-said William while putting his gun down, clearly shocked his speculation was true

Let us go back a couple of years to a village near Vale called Domgard. They were very close to Gwynbleidd and even had a trading road that they shared it with. One day a caravan came from the neighboring village, yet it seemed very odd. Its wheels were going slowly, the driver had dirt on his face and hands and instead of a regular horse there was a donkey. Citizens of Domgard could see in the distance smoke still coming from where Gwynbleidd was, even though it already has been 2 days. The caravan, which already was near the first homes, then revealed accidentally a part of its horrible content-lifeless human hand dangling from the back of the caravan. The driver of the caravan didn't look the citizens in the eyes, but they all knew he was the gravedigger. At some point he stopped the donkey, got off and tried to put the lifeless hand back into the caravan...when suddenly it grabbed him:

-Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaa!-he screamed and jumped back. He then wobbled and fell on the ground-Z...z...z...ZOMBIE!

-What are you screaming for, Gramps?-a voice said from behind him. He turned around to see a group of youngsters in leather armors walking close to him

-Oh thank Maidens! It's one of the corpses. It's...it's...it's moving!

-Moving?-laughed one of the newcomers-are you sure everything's alright with your head?

At that moment the whole group of 4 guys and 1 girl were near the back of the caravan and were taking off the blanket. When it finally fell off and the stench of dead people started to pollute the air, the youngsters noticed one of the corpses indeed was moving. To Artaud, the leader of the group, it seemed very bizarre as that person had no legs and one of his eyes was missing. He then pulled the moving corpse out of the pile. The rest of his group got closer to him as he was placing the undead guy on the grass:

-Think it's a Hexman, Mithra?-he asked the girl

-I don't think so. His remaining eye has human pupils and the aura feels weaker, yet fuller-said the mentioned girl while examining him

-Interesting. So there is someone who survived the attack...-said Artaud as he crouched near the guy's face-care to tell us your name, stranger?

-W...w...w...water-the stranger mumbled

-Nice to meet you, water-said Artaud with irony, laughed and took out a hip-flask from behind his belt. He then gave it to Mithra who poured the water from it into the man's mouth

-We're gonna take you to the Haghaus. They should fix you-said the girl

-Alrighty then. Nothing to see here, folks! Move along! And you, gramps-Artaud focused his sight on the gravedigger-check the pulse next time before you put corpses on your caravan

After that the mysterious 5 youngsters brought this strange man into the mentioned Haghaus. This is how the locals called a two-floored house near the town's hall. It was inhabited by local herbalists, alchemists, nurses and doctors, but the folks referred to them as witches, thus the name of their nursing home-"Haghaus". When they reached the doors, one of the guys knocked a few times. A girl with slicked black hair in a white dress answered the door. She greeted Artaud, who came in front of the rest of the group with a typical question for her:

-What do you want, Rat?-she asked

-You owe me these 50 Liens, Mozaïk-replied Artaud with a smirk-where's doctor Coral?

-In her office-replied the girl, curving her lips and stepped away, letting the group enter the Haghaus. After rushing for about 4 minutes in the labyrinth of rooms this mansion had they finally reached their destination. They opened the door without knocking.

Doctor Coral was sitting by her desk, looking through some files with glasses on her nose. As soon as Artaud and the rest entered they could smell her perfume very well-freesia and apricot, so typical for her. She slowly raised her sight at the visitors and sighed:

-What do you need this time, Rats?-she asked

-We have someone from Gwynbleidd-replied Artaud, clearly excited-and since your specialty involves broken limbs we thought you could do something about...him

Mithra stepped to an operating table, Coral followed her. She put the man the Rats picked up on the table and the doctor started to examine him:

-Incredible he hasn't bled out yet-she said, looking closer at him-hmmmmm...he does seem to be built like a Hexman, yet there are no effects of mutation on him. Fascinating

-Can you...do something about it, doctor?-asked Mithra

-Of course I can. However it won't be satisfying enough as we haven't gotten our latest shipment of prosthetics yet. We'll have to improvise with wood and glass. Get me Mozaïk here right now

-I'm already here, doctor-said the mentioned girl who suddenly appeared in the room

-Great! Get me one glass eye, an eyepatch and two average sized prosthetic wooden legs

-I'm on it-replied the girl with slicked hair

The treatment was long, but Coral and Mozaïk managed to finally attach the second leg to their new patient. When they did that, they took his temperature and supplied him with medication for him to get better. When he finally regained consciousness to the point he could speak, the Rats came back to the Haghaus:

-How are you feeling?-asked Artaud

-Surely better than before-replied the guy

-Care to tell us your name now, then?-asked Mithra

-William. William Vengh-replied the patient

-Last names don't matter here in Domgard, there's no need for you to reveal it to us-laughed the leader of the Rats-I'm Artaud and this is Mithra, Vilge, Sorel and Rience. We found you on the gravedigger's caravan, you were still partially conscious

-What?-William was utterly confused

-Don't overflow him with too many information for now, Art-said the one who was introduced as Vilge-you see how weak he still is

-Might be. But surviving a Grimm attack on an isolated village in the middle of the forest is no ordinary thing

-What? Grimm attack? What?-William was asking, confused

-You know, the one in Gwynbleidd-replied the man introduced as Rience

-There never was a Grimm attack back home-replied William while grabbing his head-Hexmen made sure it never happens

-If it wasn't a Grimm attack then what burned Gwynbleidd to the ground then, huh?-asked the 4th guy, Sorel-tell us

-The Inverted Cross-William said, diving into his memory before waking up in Domgard

-It sounds like some...organization...-said Mithra. She clearly was intrigued

-Organization is an understatement-suddenly another female voice could be heard in the room. All the Rats turned around to see doctor Coral and Mozaïk in the doorstep-they used to be one of the most influential political parties in Remnant. Our guest is talking about Lahilla, who are sometimes referred to as personifications of the Grimm, though they don't possess any of their traits except cruelty. Some people confuse them with Hexmen, but they are half-Grimm and, apart from Lahilla, have a heart of gold. Or...they used to. If Lahilla actually destroyed Gwynbleidd then there's no way any Hexman survived unless he escaped. They're killing machines, trained long ago by Mantle's forces to aid Mistral in the Great War and so they can go toe to toe with anyone, even a Hexman. It's still a miracle anyone survived

-Well...that's interesting-said Sorel-but what do we do now about him then?

-Can I stay in Domgard?-asked William

-Of course you can, you're welcome here-said Mithra

-However-Artaud stepped in-doctor Coral mentioned, while treating you, that you have a body of a Hexman, yet no signs of mutation. How is that possible?

-I was an adept-replied William-but ultimately I rejected joining the Brotherhood

-And why is that?-asked Vilge, surprised

-I didn't want to lose half of my soul, unlike my close friend Nick, who was the Grandmaster's son. By the way...have you seen him? Long, dark brown hair, pale green eyes, dumb smirk on face?

-No, there was nobody like that on the caravan-said Artaud

At that moment William looked out the window, through which he could see the entire Domgard and the road leading to where his home was. He could even see a blue line of the Tinsel peacefully flowing a couple of kilometers from Domgard. "Where are you, Nick?" he thought to himself.

Ultimately Vengh joined the Rats, once he got used to his new legs and got the courage to stop hiding the glass eye behind an eyepatch. They were the village's scouts, lollygagging around the Tinsel, pulling pranks on adults and reporting any Grimm presence. Occasionally, they would hunt some animals for the inn or help out the women at Haghaus. Life seemed to become pretty simple for William...until one day.

It was about a day after the first snow fell on Sanus, which was saying that winter has begun. At that time the Rats were spending most of their time in the inn. Artaud and Will were talking with pints of mead in their hands, Vilge and Sorel were playing some card game and Mithra was playing the lute:

-I know these chords-William said to Mithra-are you playing "The Wolven Storm"?

-That's right-she replied-I love this song, but I can't memorize the lyrics at all

-I can't either, especially after I heard this song sang by the original creator

-You did?-Mithra seemed intrigued yet again

-Yeah, she was from Gwynbleidd. We had a guild there, which was dedicated for boys and girls who have musical and poetic talents as well as beautiful voices, we called them bards. The girl who wrote "The Wolven Storm" was a member of this guild. Me and Nick got to meet her when she performed this poem for the first time at the local inn

-What was she like?-asked Artaud

-She was a very modest sweetheart. When Nick started to compliment her and her work she kept blushing, hugging us, kissing our cheeks, yet at first she was all like "awww shtahp it, you're flattering moi"-the last words Will said in a weird, squeaky tone

All the Rats laughed hearing that funny voice Will made and his intended bad pronunciation. After that Artaud took a sip of his mead:

-What happened to her?-he asked

-I'm afraid she got drowned in the Tinsel during the attack. At least her poem managed to leave her hometown and become popular, so that she doesn't die entirely-replied William, clearly sad

-Well then-Mithra suddenly raised her pint of mead-to the female poet from Gwynbleidd!

-Cheers-all the Rats replied at the same time and clanged their pints with Mithra's. After that they emptied them

-Hey, Will-said Vilge after a while, clearly drunk-I heard once, that people in Gwynbleidd have multiple languages. You speak any of these?

-You bet, Vilge, my friend-replied Vengh, also drunk

-Oh yeah? Then say something in it

-" _Chędoż się!"_ -William replied and burst out laughing for a short time

-The fuck does that mean?-asked Vilge

-"Go fuck yourself"-replied William, hardly breathing

Everyone burst out laughing loudly, almost falling off the benches. Later they calmed down:

-Hey Will, how do you say in your language "I love you"?-asked Artaud

- _"Masz fajne cycki"_ -Will replied, snickering

-Are you making fun of me?-Artaud asked, smiling

-Yes, yes I am-Will replied, yet again bursting out with laughter

At that moment Mithra sat next to him:

-Come on, tell me what this really means-she said

Will told her to come closer and whispered into her ear. She immediately blushed:

-But you already said that before-she said and giggled

-No, it's really what it means-Will said, still laughing a bit

-What did he say?-asked Artaud

-He said my tits are fine-replied Mithra with another giggle

-Oh dear, William-said Artaud in a girly voice, but immediately changed it after laughing-You're so dirtyyyyyyyyyyy!

-But I didn't...-Vengh tried to say something

-But he's right, you know-said Vilge

-Of course he is-replied Artaud-but compare our Mithra to any girl from the Haghaus. She's pretty flat, isn't she?

-You jerk!-Mithra said and kicked Artaud in the knee under the table

-Ouch! See what I'm talking about?! What do you think, Sorel? Sorel?

The 2nd card player was already snoring with his heads surrounded by his hands on the table:

-Did he really get bored of talking about Mithra's chest?-asked Vilge

-Told you she's flat-said Artaud

-Say one more thing like that and you're gonna be suffocated by that flat chest!-yelled Mithra

-Yeah yeah, I love you too-replied the leader of the Rats and blew a kiss at the girl. She only got redder on her face

-Well...if he's sleeping, maybe we should take a short nap here too-said Vilge

-Yeah. We'll take a nap and then we'll go to the Tinsel to see if no Grimm comes from Mountain Glenn towards us. I bet we're gonna still see some-said Artaud-what species do you think we'll see?

-Probably a Beowolf or an Ursa as always-said Mithra-stop betting so much and sleep already...jerk

All the Rats placed their heads on the tables and fell asleep. However, they quickly got woken up by Rience, who suddenly burst into the tavern right from the Haghaus, where he was helping out doctor Coral in cleaning the hall where William was treated:

-Guys, wake up! Quickly!-he kept saying while shaking the sleeping Artaud

-Jesus, Rience, I had like the best dream ever-Vilge mumbled while waking up-what is it?

-The Grimm are attacking!-he suddenly yelled in panic

-WHAT?!-all the other Rats suddenly woke up. Artaud, Will, Vilge, Sorel and Mithra jumped away from the benches and rushed out through the door with Rience being right behind them.

Indeed, an army of Grimm was coming from Mountain Glenn's direction. The Rats were observing from a roof of one of the houses. Everyone could see a pack of Beowolves and Ursas, but there was something strange. They all seemed not to rush without strategy towards Domgard, but they were marching in lines, like some kind of organized army. Between the pack of Grimm wolves and bears the Rats noticed:

-WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT THING?!-yelled Rience in panic

The Beowolves and Ursas were commanded by a different Grimm. It definitely stood out with its size, because it was much more terrifying. It also wasn't neither a Beowolf, nor an Ursa. It was a horse-like creature with an equine main body and a skinless humanoid creature that was fused with it. Its forelegs were shaped like claws and it had hooved hindlegs that left behind them a characteristic hoof print. The humanoid body had long horns on its head, a mouth that looked almost sewn shut, and two long elastic arms each with two clawed fingers. On the back of the human torso were boney spikes, along was spine and a variety of weapons from previous battles stuck in it. The Rats swallowed saliva in fear:

-William, you ever encountered this Grimm back in Gwynbleidd?-asked Artaud

-Uhhhhh...I think so. If I'm not mistaken, this species was called Nuckelavee. Strange, because they aren't a native species on Sanus, but on Anima and even so they are extremely rare. HOW THE FUCK DID IT GET HERE?!

-I don't give a fuck what's it called. Is it intimidating? Worse than Beowolf or an Ursa?

-Ok ok, calm down. It is, you guys wanna run now?

-Not until everyone evacuates. Once they do, we call Beacon. This thing might actually have brains-said Vilge

-You're right. Everyone, let's go. This Nucke something will not feast on people of Domgard, not as long as the Rats have something to say about it. Now go. We've gotta check every house. William, go with me to the Haghaus-said Artaud

The leader of the Rats, as well as William, jumped off the roof first and rushed across the main street towards the Haghaus. Their feet were leaving a trace in snow behind them and with that they finally reached their destination.

The Haghaus stood as always in its normal state. Artaud and Will looked at each other and nodded. Then the leader of the Rats walked up to the door and knocked loudly:

-Mozaïk, open that door!-he said as he was knocking

-Maybe they're sleeping?-asked William

-3 PM and they would sleep?-rhetorically asked Artaud, pointing at his watch-I'm going in there

The leader of the Rats then took a deep breath and kicked the door in. After that he rushed inside:

-Doctor Coral! Mozaïk! Professor Icarti! Where are you?!

Suddenly both William and Artaud heard footsteps on the higher floor. They both drew their swords (all the Rats used same type of sword) and slowly snuck up the stairs. Then they slowly opened the nearest door and jumped inside with their swords drawn.

In the room they landed in there was just a table and around it a big group of women were discussing something. Artaud's blood boiled in his veins. Suddenly a familiar face stepped out of the crowd:

-Rats, what brings you here? Why do you come here with your swords drawn?-asked doctor Coral

-You...-said Artaud and pointed his sword at the doctor-YOU better tell me what YOU'RE doing here when there's a giant Grimm outside threatening to feast on the entire Domgard. William, what was the species of that motherfucker?

-Nuckelavee-said William

-Nukedalavey, yes!-said Artaud, completely twisting the word

-Fascinating...a Grimm from Anima suddenly appeared here, on Sanus. That truly is intriguing-said Coral

-There will be nothing fascinating in it if you end up as its food!

-Silly Rat, you still don't get it?-giggled the doctor-it's what we wanted all along

-Excuse you?-said Artaud, placing his hands on his hips

-We've waited so long for a Grimm to finally get attracted to this village. We already made a lot of progress while experimenting on Creeps, Death Stalkers and certain plants in Mountain Glenn but when we catch that Nuckelavee...we might have a breakthrough!

-What are you even...

-We're scientists, Artaud. Merlot Industries. "Building a better tomorrow"-said Coral

-You lured this atrocity into our village just to have a successful experiment?! That's horrible

-It's productive, Rat. We don't have to pay too much for lab rats-said Coral and smirked

-You bitch!-yelled Artaud and tried to jump at the doctor, but Will stopped him at the right moment

-Don't waste your strength on her-he said-we should go and take care of it ourselves, so that they don't have satisfaction

-You're right. Let's go-said the leader of the Rats and spat on the floor before leaving with William.

The two men left the Haghaus and were already on the main road of Domgard...and then they noticed it.

The Nuckelavee stood silently as Beowolves and Ursas were roaring and running around, plunging their claws and jaws into everything in their way. From time to time both Rats could hear dying screams of Domgard's people. Mithra, Vilge, Sorel and Rience failed. William closed his eye. "Please let them be alive" he thought.

Once Vengh opened his eye again, the Nuckelavee was looking directly at him. Shivers went down his spine. Artaud was giving the big monster an angry look. And then...the monster raised its hand. Immediately all the Beowolves and Ursas got silent and walked back to their master. The Nuckelavee then did a gesture of some sort with its hand and the other Grimm moved more to the sides, making a passage just for the two Rats to fit in. Artaud went first. He walked fast towards the giant creature. Will tried to catch up to him. When they finally were near the human/horse Grimm, Artaud pointed his sword at him:

-You ugly ass demon! I am Artaud of the Rats. You befoul this holy ground with your presence. Begone!

The Nuckelavee then let out a strange noise that sounded like a laugh. At first it was very harsh, hard to recognize it as a laugh, but it quickly took a shape of a regular laugh...of a woman. And then both William and Artaud heard a female voice. The monster's mouth wasn't saying anything, but the voice was surely coming from its burning mouth:

-Your pathetic words have no effect on this majestic beast. Many of you tried and many have failed trying to take it out. You see? All these arrows in its back and it's still not dead. You will just be another one of these arrows-it said and then the monster focused on William-aaaaaaaaah, I smell a Gwynbleiddean. Today my children will have double satisfaction from making you both regret your efforts

-Who is this?-asked Artaud, but the Nuckelavee didn't respond. Instead it opened its clenched fist and put something on the ground before the two Rats. Artaud looked in horror. It was Vilge, Mithra, Sorel and Rience. He quickly kneeled before them:

-Oh no, oh no, oh no! How could I let this happen?!-he kept screaming, tears dripping from his eyes. William was also in shock, as it was the first time he ever saw Artaud cry. Usually he was putting on a mask of mockery and a smirk every time something troublesome happened, but not this time. He was crying his eyes out, calling out to his dead friends. William was looking at the Rats, traumatized already from sorrow:

-I'm gonna fucking make a scarf out of your guts!-Artaud suddenly screamed and jumped at the Nuckelavee. At that moment the army of Beowolves and Ursas roared and jumped at him. But at that moment Artaud wasn't a sarcastic and mean leader of the Rats anymore. He was a warrior, ready to die to avenge his friends, a berserker whose one blow was spilling lots of Grimm blood everywhere. As the pile of dead Grimm was rising under his feet and William was defending himself from the Beowolves that were attacking him, Artaud decided to try to engage the Nuckelavee again. He crouched and then made a huge jump. He raised his sword, ready to shove it down the huge beast's throat...when suddenly a loud screech emerged from the Grimm, stopping Artaud in the air right in front of the Nuckelavee's face. He started to fall down to the ground like a ragdoll...and then the monster's arm extended itself, caught him and smashed onto a wall of a nearby house:

-Artaud!-screamed William after him

Now he was alone on the battlefield. It was the first time he felt it. That feeling that he thought he doesn't possess. The feeling he thought he doesn't need because he'll never experience it. Blood really boiled inside of William's body. His teeth started to grind and then he snapped. He let out his inner berserker. For the next minutes William was gliding through oceans of blood of Grimm, trying to finish what Artaud started. The more he was killing, the more flashbacks of his past life were reflecting in the blood: his tough childhood, education with Nick, rejection of the Brotherhood, working at the warehouse, getting engaged with Jenny, Lahilla's attack, murder of these 2 looters, waking up among corpses in a caravan, reliving comradery with the Rats in Domgard...and now this. This is where he was supposed to end his life? In battle with a giant Grimm? But for what? Why die for another village if he couldn't even protect his own home? These questions were flowing through his mind as he was finishing the last Grimm the Nuckelavee brought with itself. When he was done, he was entirely soaked in blood. The giant Grimm monster just looked in awe at the raging human in front of it. William then turned to his right and saw Artaud's body lying on the ground, still twitching in pain. Vengh decided to walk up to his Rat friend and be there for him as he passes on to the next life. Halfway there his wooden legs snapped and he landed on his chest on the ground. The impact was so big the glass eye popped out of his eye socket. With a hole in his eye and no legs again he crawled up to Artaud and laid down next to him:

-So...-the dying leader of the Rats said while gushing blood out of his mouth-this is it, huh? This is where we all end. Like true Rats

-Yeah...you know, Artaud? We haven't known each other for that long, but you still are one of my best friends

-I'm glad, Will-he said and tried to laugh but just spat out more blood-don't make me laugh, it hurts

-I'm serious!

-But I know the real truth. We were never destined to be friends forever, William. You...you need to believe, that your true friend is still out there, never lose hope. Let my soul live on with you, my friend

Both Rats heard as the Nuckelavee slowly walks away from Domgard, leaving the two dying on the ground, thinking its job is done:

-I think...I see Mithra...Will, quick...tell me, do you think I could become her boyfriend?-Artaud mumbled

-You could be-William replied, looking as the Nuckelavee walks away. "One day I will reach that burning mouth of yours and I will make its flame fade away like you made all of us here fade away" he thought. After that he turned around. From Artaud's mouth blood was slowly stopping to flow, his eyes were opened, but Will knew they don't look at anything anymore. Artaud, the leader of the Rats, was dead.

-Absolutely fascinating! That Grimm has spoken to the specimen! Did you see that? It used a female voice!-suddenly William heard the voice of doctor Coral nearby. She and her group of sick female scientists left the Haghaus. He closed his eyes, tired of everything.

-Well, that specimen is dead-William felt as an unknown woman with this voice pushes the corpse of Artaud

-It's still quite impressive for this specimen to survive so much, on the other hand-said Coral near William's body

-However, he lost all his prosthetics. He will be of no use for us anymore-said the voice of Mozaïk

-That is up for the Doctor to decide, Mozaïk-replied Coral, putting a weird accent on the word "the"

-Chief's coming? Oh, how wonderful! We will finally come back to the island! I'll need a lot of time to relax after this experiment-said another female voice

-Look, there he is!-said Mozaïk

Indeed, William heard as a ship is landing nearby. He got so curious he opened his eye. He only managed to see the type-it was a private medium bullhead. The staircase emerged and a figure walked down the stairs themselves. Will could see a white cape waving behind that man. He seemed as if he was in hurry:

-An astonishing achievement, ladies. This will push projects of the Industry further. In the message you sent, you mentioned something about a man who survived the attack on Gwynbleidd, no?

-Ah yes, Doctor Merlot! The specimen's right here-said doctor Coral

Merlot walked up closer to William, who this time fell unconscious. But before he crouched in front of him, he suddenly raised his hand and slapped doctor Coral in the face:

-Mrs. Neyd-he said-I will not tolerate calling successful experiments "specimen". With that Nuckelavee we might have discovered a bigger talent in a human being than we could have ever found in a Grimm. Though I still need you to explain how in the Dust did that specimen from Anima spare any lives...Anyway, I haven't seen such impressive human being since my research on Hexmen. Get him aboard the ship. We'll take him to the Island. I might have an idea to make him even better.

William woke up in some kind of hospital. He was in a comfortable bed and everywhere he could see bright lights. The only window was giving him a view on the sea and the beach on which he could clearly hear seagulls...and then he looked upon himself. He had new legs, this time they were made of some kind of metal and he could curve them, unlike the wooden ones he had. He touched the hole where his other eye once was but he heard a metal sound. He then realized he can see with this eye. After that he put his hand behind on his back and felt something metal there too. Like an artificial spine of some sort. And then he looked at his hands to see some weird wires attached to him, yet he didn't feel them under his skin. When he was about to scream, realizing what happened before he landed in this hospital, he heard as the door opens. Merlot walked inside. He didn't have his cape anymore:

-I see you have awaken. Good-he said

-What have you done to me?!-William yelled

-That's not a way to show gratitude. We made you the way you were destined to be made: Model X5000 commonly known as "a cyborg"

-A cyborg?-William asked-I got turned into a machine?

-Not at all-laughed Merlot-the artificial pieces were attached to you via the neural system, so they technically are your limbs. You'll need about a week of rehabilitation to get used to them but trust me when I say it's going to be worth it. Now, how about your first test. Get up and walk with me to get some breakfast

-Wait! Who...are you...and why did you help me?

-Hmpf-Merlot snorted-You keep asking questions, so I'll tell you. You're about to be obliged to do several tests that are essential to my research. Other than that I want you to become my..."cleaner", let's call it like that

-Oh...okay...I guess-said William, utterly confused

-Splendid!-said Merlot with joy-and my name is Merlot. Doctor Merlot

And so William Vengh became a new test subject of Merlot Industries. The doctor became so fascinated with him, he kept him in and treated like his own son. Soon even William himself formed a bond with the crazy scientist, forgetting easily about comradery he shared with Domgard's mob. He was no longer a Rat. Now his life was on this island. But even though he forgot, Artaud's soul still lived on within William, and served as a reminder of an even bigger friend William has yet to reunite with-Nicholas Van Thorne, who has gone missing. Nevertheless, the cyborg learned all his skills he knows to this day-he became a weapon expert, a deadly fighter with his taser staff, learned all the advantages the exoskeleton was giving him.

But just like before...one day...fate decided to prank him...the wrong way.

It was Friday. William was after a successful assassination outside of the island. He killed a journalist who was spreading rumors about Merlot's comeback while he was on a date. After one shot through the heart, he walked up to the terrified girl and said:

-Sorry, baby. You need to get another boyfriend now. His heart belongs to someone else

And now William was driving his motorboat towards the island, where Merlot had his secret research facility. However, as he started getting closer and closer to the island he already saw in the distance, he noticed smoke. Lots and lots of it. That made him speed up the boat and reach the docks faster. When he jumped out on the harbor, he immediately realized there are no androids guarding it. That turned out suspicious enough for him to get a hold of his one-handed rifle and the staff. He started to slowly walk towards the entrance to the facility, which seemed to be the center of the fire. While going there a couple of stray Grimm attacked him, so he put them down with a couple of shots.

And then he saw him. Merlot was near the entrance with a bottle of rum in his hands and was dancing. William remembered as he was once learning Gwynbleiddish song lyrics with Merlot. Now the doctor was singing them in a drunken state, dancing in circles near the gate to what once was his facility:

-" _Wszyscy mamy źle w głowach, że żyjemy._ _Hej hej lalalala hej hej hej!"_ -he was singing in the foreign language

-What happened?!-William asked

-Oh! Is that you, son? Amazing! I was just about to call you-said the doctor in a drunken state

-Dad, let's go somewhere where you can get sober. All of this can be rebuilt

-No, it can't! All is lost! I had to destroy all my work because some team of spoiled brats from Beacon came here and trashed the work of my life!-Merlot cried

-You're exaggerating-William said

-You're the one who does that by calling me your dad, William-Merlot seemed to be getting desperate-I cannot live like this anymore. I cannot live without creating better future

Merlot then looked at Will, his red eye flashing at him:

-You...you could free me from this nightmare! Oh please, William!

-Why should I kill you? I have no reason for that!-Vengh yelled

-You do! I was the one who set that experiment in Domgard, remember? That Nuckelavee? My girls brought it there, my!

William then realized the thing that was haunting him. He then had a flashback of this horrible day, when he and Artaud tried to fight the Nuckelavee. That monster killed everything William cared about back there. And then he realized...it was him, the man he started to call "dad", who actually caused this. He may have made him into a cyborg, but the stain couldn't get washed away that easily:

-I wanted to forget what happened in Domgard-said William-but I won't now as long as you're alive

-That's the spirit-Merlot was happy to die, apparently-keep it going, X5000

-My name is William Vengh, freak. And from this day forward I shall hunt down the murderer of my friend, Artaud of the Rats, as well as the one who was in charge of Lahilla during the attack on my home. I already got the help I needed from you, you'll no longer be needed in my quest. Once I'm done with Nuckelavee, I'll find the last person I could ever trust and then keep going forward. You are the end of the chapter, dad-after these words he raised his hand in which he had his rifle...and pulled the trigger. Merlot hit the ground with his back, blood pouring out of his wounds. William didn't even bother checking his pulse, he just hid the weapons and started moving towards his motorboat-the beginning of a new chapter in his life.

And now, after all this time has passed since William killed that man...he was now standing in front of him, without any trace of being shot, in Mistral's CCT tower:

-It's been a while, son-said the doctor

-I think we can both agree there's no longer any bond between us-William replied

-None? Even friendship of some sort?

-Only remnants of it

-I see-Merlot seemed sad about that-a pity

At that moment the door opened and some group of people rushed inside. Those were the soldiers of Lahilla as their gas masks had red eyes flashing:

-You there!-one of the soldiers yelled

At that moment William tightened the grip on his gun and pulled the trigger. A swarm of Dust bullets left the rifle and started to wound the soldiers. "I hope my F.A.T.-KIM 48-19 has enough bullets to at least shatter their armors" he thought. In the end it turned out that William's one-handed rifle made holes so big in the soldiers' armors their clothes could be seen. When the soldiers realized that, they got even more pissed off:

-You're already dead-said William and smirked, while reloading the rifle. Once he was done he shot one bullet for one soldier. Once he made sure everyone got their shot he pressed a button on his gun and every soldier exploded from the inside. Merlot watched in awe:

-You've finally tried out the secondary fire-he said

-It's not my first time-replied Vengh. Then the look on his face got gloomy and he pointed the rifle at the man who adopted him

-Whoa, whoa! William, put that gun down, I didn't tell these guys a word! I didn't even know you're around!

-Oh? And where did X5000 go? Where's that cry for death?-Will asked

-I was just heavily wounded from your shots-Merlot replied and showed William a scar on his neck. It was round like from being hit with a bullet-Lahilla found the island, they took me in and treated my wounds

-But still where did your will to die go?-asked Vengh with a sarcasm

-I was constantly watched. Lahilla, they...they wish to continue my experiments. But their plans are worse than anything I ever had in mind! And Mistral is their first target for tests!

-What are you talking about?-William got intrigued and hid the gun

-The Masked Fox...hired a scientist, a woman, some time ago. He wants her to create an army of obedient Grimm! Obedient to HER!

-Wasn't that kind of your idea?

-I only wished to make the Grimm fight each other, so that humanity doesn't have to entirely eliminate them by themselves! But this woman...she's something else. She wants to make Grimm obey her and Lahilla so that their utopian vision becomes reality! But that's not the worst...this woman thinks she can make Grimm OF HER OWN! But her first experiment went wrong and instead of creating artificial substitute for the Syndrome Code she created a simple virus, but the Fox desperately wanted more. He ordered her to spread the failed substitute anyway, but she didn't stop. She told the Fox I can be of use to her with my research and so she interrogated all my work from me by herself

-How?

-Truth serum-suddenly William heard a voice behind him. He turned around to see Nick coming slowly in his direction. He had a syringe in his hand

-Truth serum? How do you even make these?-asked William, confused

-It's pretty simple-replied Nick-you need to mix an extract from a Creep's eye with dried up fern flowers

-Aren't fern flowers under ecological protection?-asked Will

-If you grow them by yourself, they're not-replied Nick-whoever this female doctor is, she surely is sophisticated in her methods. Now, it's time to see if they really work...

Nick walked up closer to Will and shocked Merlot, who didn't notice Nick enter the room he was in. The Hexman then raised the syringe he had in his hand and plunged it in Merlot's carotid artery:

-What the hell are you doing?!-William yelled

-I snatched this syringe from Jacques Schnee's cartridge belt in case I will have to interrogate someone to know about the Fox. It has an automatic trigger so it started injecting the serum right after it touched his skin. I know it's a truth serum because I smelled it through the needle

-Are you sure it's this serum?

-Even if it isn't, 75% of Dust poisons can be easily extracted with Axii. Besides, he has prosthetics, just like you, so they should have filtering system. However, just to be sure, if he starts twitching, I'll do that

-Why didn't you use Axii in the first place?!-yelled William

-Axii can only interrogate from people an information they hide out of loyalty. Merlot is clearly scared of the Fox, so he won't say a word because Axii can't break fear barriers. Truth serums, on the other hand...they'll do the trick

Merlot then got suddenly dizzy. Van Thorne got closer to him, while William gently took out an empty syringe from his neck:

-Now, doctor, answer me. What is the true identity of The Masked Fox?-asked Nick

-T...T...T-Merlot started to mumble

-You're almost through the fear barrier, come on-Nick encouraged the old scientist

-Thomas-Merlot finally said, quietly

-Thomas what?-asked Nick impatiently

-Seraphimovich-mumbled Merlot even quieter

-Write down this name, William. Thomas Seraphimovich-said Nick with joy-We finally got him! Merlot?

Suddenly, just as William feared, Merlot started to have convulsions. His red eye started to glow and the red elements on his artificial arm did the same:

-I told you it's not a truth serum!-yelled William, trying to grab a hold of Merlot, who was now having a seizure

-It is! I clearly could smell the fern flower! Wait a second-said Nick and grabbed the empty syringe. He looked at it and his eyes got wider-Holy shit! No wonder he started to have convulsions! We injected around 20 cubic centimeters of the serum into his bloodstream. That's way too much for a human organism! He overdosed

-Is that dangerous?

-A little bit. He needs medical help as fast as possible. Get him to the bullhead just outside the tower, Ironwood and others should still be there. Tell the paramedics to give him 12 milliliters of remroot extract, not more. It will cause him to throw up for a long time, but he should get rid of all the serum that's inside him right now. After that, remember to keep him hydrated and conscious

-What about you?-asked William while grabbing Merlot in his hands

-I have a fox with rabies to shoot-said Nick while grabbing a hold of his golden gun and smirked

-You know where to look?-asked Will

-Seraphimovich has a superiority complex, he's surely on the top floor. However, if I don't find him there, inform Tromberg and Ironwood about him immediately. Just like Merlot said, he's somewhere in this city

-Understood-said William and walked out of the room, towards the elevator, with Merlot on his back.

Nicholas set guns in both his hands, breathed in, and slowly walked towards the door deeper in the computer room of Mistral's CCT tower. "If the map was accurate, the stairway to the top floor is right behind that door" thought the Hexman. After that he kicked it in and walked through. Indeed, the staircase was right in front of him and he was about to begin climbing it...

When suddenly he heard a sound coming down the stairs. It sounded as if a small, glass object was falling from the stairs. Nick prepared his guns, ready to shoot, when he noticed the object. It was a small, purple, glass ball. Van Thorne kept staring as it bounces down the stairs and lands right where his feet were. He tried to pick it up...when suddenly it let out a sound of a small explosion and the ball shattered into pieces. Now Nick was surrounded by a purple smoke. No matter how hard he tried to avoid it, some entered his lungs, which caused his vision to black out...and faint.

Gwynbleidd, the night of the Purification. Lahilla's soldiers already murdered a lot of citizens, houses were burning, the Tinsel was getting red. One particular shed near the once majestic castle of The Brotherhood was also burning, but with someone inside. Meters away from that shed, near the castle itself, stood the very short Thomas Seraphimovich in his white mask, golden tunic and dark brown hiking boots. Among him were his most loyal companions. One of them stood out in particular. Unlike others, he didn't wear a silver tunic. Instead, he was dressed in a dirty duster, black cowboy boots and had a silver headband surrounding his dark grey hair. He held a dark green revolver in his hand, typical for soldiers of Lahilla. Smoke was coming from its barrel. In front of the entire company two corpses were lying on the cold, muddy ground. A woman, with her dress torn apart and a bullet hole in her forehead, and a beheaded man. Blood was sliding down onto the ground from their wounds. Seraphimovich then walked up to the man with the revolver:

-Good, good! You've finally said goodbye to your past! Now you and I can aim for the stars, together as one-he said

-I didn't kill Yen and Sihill so that you have satisfaction-replied Seraphimovich's companion and gave him a hard look. Nick, locked in the burning shed, saw in horror that the man who just murdered his parents had narrow pupils in his eyes-I wanted to avenge my sister, that's all

-That's what you keep telling yourself, Von Greim-the leader of Lahilla replied and raised his finger-however, deep down, you know you still haven't achieved your full potential. Join me and together we shall rule the entire Remnant!

-Mother! Father!-Nick suddenly cried from the shed, trying to break the wooden door he was locked behind

At that moment Seraphimovich and the man he called Von Greim looked at where the scream came from. Nick felt the evil Hexman's eyes on him:

-Poor boy. I heard burning alive is a painful way to go-said the leader of Lahilla-let's go

-Not yet-Von Greim said-I need to make sure this boy dies a painless death

-Why do you care?-asked the man in the mask

-It's Nick, Sihill's son. I must make sure he can see his parents once again

-As you wish. We're going to saddle up the horses. Once you're done, join us by the Tinsel-replied Seraphimovich and walked away with his other companions.

Von Greim took out a one-handed sword from a holster he had attached to his army pants and started to slowly walk towards the burning shed. When he was near the doors Nick tried to break earlier, he tried to break them himself. Seeing it doesn't do anything, Von Greim snapped his fingers and used one of the Hexman semblances. The wooden door shattered into pieces. One of the wooden planks hit Nick in the face, making his nose bleed. Von Greim then snapped his fingers again and surrounded himself with a force field. With that he walked into the shed slowly. Nick was on the ground, heavily breathing both from anger and fear:

-Sorry about that-he said and smiled

Nick didn't say anything. He was just lying on the floor, staring. Von Greim walked up closer to him and pointed his sword at him:

-You do know who I am, right?-he asked as hot ash was being deflected by his invisible force field

Nick still kept silent.

-I really wish we could sort this out like civilized men-said the former Hexman-this isn't your fault. You just had wrong parents

Nick felt iron taste in his mouth. Blood. He quickly spat it out.

-Oh, come on! I showed you some respect. The least you can do is be grateful for that, since you're in such a condition-said Von Greim and ostentatiously looked at his hands. One of them had small bloodstains near fingers-Goodness, did that plank hit you that hard? Hmmmmm...you have any tissue? Or a handkerchief? Oh what am I saying, of course you don't. Here, take mine.

Von Greim then passed a white square, which looked like a regular tissue, to Nick. With hesitation, the young Hexman stretched out his hand to take it...when he suddenly felt dull pain in the face. When he was distracted, Von Greim punched him in the cheek:

-Changed my mind, you know-he said-I'm gonna have a little fun with you before you leave. Oh boy, was my punch really that hard? I guess I have to try harder if I want to be satisfied

After that he let out an evil giggle. Nick was trying to desperately stop the bleeding from his cheek with one of his hands. In the meantime, Von Greim stomped on his other hand. Nick screamed in pain, but the former Hexman shoved his boot in his mouth, preventing him from screaming:

-How many times did your father tell you that the true Hexmen don't scream from pain? None? Well then consider me telling you this a favor. I really hate screaming and so other Hexmen used to

After a while Nick's voice silenced and Von Greim took his boot out of his mouth. After that he grabbed him by the head:

-I'm sorry about that. I'll knock you out now, so that you don't feel as I finish you-he said and smashed Nick's head onto the ground.

But Van Thorne didn't pass out. Instead he felt the dull pain in his nose and teeth. Von Greim felt that and raised his eyebrow:

-Oh, the Bear School surely trained you well if you haven't passed out from that. Some say Hexmen pass out only when they want to. Are you a masochist, Nicholas? You like having your head shoved into the ground? Wait a second, I need to make sure you feel magnificent.

After that Von Greim slowly took Nick's head in his hand and wiped off the blood from his face with his tissue, the one he passed to him earlier:

-None of your friends screamed as I was shoving my sword in their hearts. But they didn't get dirty before I was doing so. Here, let me clean that. After all, you need to look like something when they take a photo of your corpse, if there will be anything left. Until then just play with me, Nicholas

-Fuck...you...-Nick managed to mumble through Von Greim's moves with his tissue

-I said play with me, you little shit!-yelled the traitor, grabbed Nick's head again and smashed it onto the ground 7 more times.

After that he let Nick's head go and moved his hand a little to shake off fragments of Nick's hair he got from doing what he did:

-Your...name...-mumbled Nick, slowly raising his head in pain-is...Schwartz...Von Greim...

-Tch-the traitor just snorted-so what if you know my name? You'll find no use for it anyway

-Yes, I know-said Nick as strength kept coming back to him-you're about to kill me just like everyone else, including my mum and dad. But no matter how far you run away, one day fate will turn your life upside down. And once it does, we're all gonna laugh in Paradise Lost. I'll say it once again, Schwartz Von Greim. We're gonna laugh until we shit from it and send rain on your rotting corpse!-the last sentence Nick said while letting out a maniacal laugh

-You shitty brat!-he yelled in anger and raised his sword

-I hoped you do that-said Nick and smiled. Suddenly Von Greim felt as his force field fades and immediately after that dull pain in his side. He looked there only to notice Nick shoving a burning wooden plank into his hip. Van Thorne hit so hard Von Greim went flying into his right and landed in burning hay. He somehow crawled out of there. The hand he held his sword with was severely burned and his eyes seemed full of ash

-I'll destroy you!-he yelled and jumped at Nick with his sword

Nick blocked Von Greim's blow with the plank, but Schwartz made a hole in it. After blocking him for about 3 minutes the treacherous Hexman hit the plank so hard it broke in half. With one half Nick smacked his enemy in the cheek and when he was about to do the same with the second half, he noticed it has a pointy edge. With that he got an idea:

-Hey, Von Greim. Enjoy your last breath-he said and plunged the pointy edge of the wooden plank into Schwartz's chest, where one of his lungs was. The former Hexman immediately spat blood, making his duster even dirtier

-Ghghghghghaaaaaaaaa!-screamed Nick's enemy in pain

"Now, I hope this time I can do it right. Just like the Griffins said" thought Nick to himself as he prepared to snap his fingers. Once he did one word came through his mind-"Aard". With that thought he stretched his hand forward and touched the edge of the plank that he stabbed Von Greim with. A wave of kinetic energy shaked all the flames of the burning shed and launched Schwartz back, shattering the wooden back of the shed and impaling the treacherous Hexman to a nearby tree. He gurgled one last time and stiffened.

But even though Nick managed to get rid of his enemy, the shed kept on burning and this time, due to Nick using Aard, it started to fall apart. He tried to go through the wall Von Greim made while flying, but the burning wood was already getting too close. At that moment he only managed to snap his fingers again and think of "Quen". Indeed, a force field surrounded him and protected from being smashed by a falling roof, but ultimately the impact was too strong and with less force, but still deadly, the entire shed fell apart on Nick's back, while his head was already dangling outside of it. At that moment he lost consciousness. His last sight was Von Greim bleeding out and voices of Seraphimovich and his men in the distance.

He was lying like that, half-dead, as the shed was slowly burning out. At some point he regained bits of consciousness as the sun was rising from the horizon. He then heard footsteps. Even though his vision was foggy, his hearing still wasn't letting him down. 4 people were coming near him. But he didn't see anything but their foggy shapes. Each one of them was glowing in different colors. One in white, one in yellow, one in red and black and the last one in red and grey:

-Check if that one's alive-said one of these people, a male with a harsh voice

-That's pointless, Qrow-said a female voice, that sounded like it's right next to him

-Raven, shut up. We were sent here for a reason-said another female voice

-Summer...stay silent if you want to keep your face, ok?-replied the woman that was called Raven

-Aaaayyy, girls. Calm down, you're already after your periods-said another male voice

-FUCK YOU TAIYANG!-yelled both female voices at the same time. Nick shivered

-He's moving-said the harsh male voice-what do we do?

-Really?! Ah, crap!-said the other male voice-you owe me, Qrow

-Whatever. I'm not willing to take him to Beacon anyway-said the harsh voice

-And why is that?!-said the voice of Summer, clearly indignant

-Raven-said the voice of Qrow-look

Nicholas felt as the called out person approaches him and touches his forehead:

-It's a Hexman-she said

-Oh dear...we must take him!-said the voice of Summer

-No-Raven replied-they are dangerous and extinct. Remember, the weak die and the strong survive. Hexmen weren't strong enough to survive this attack, so they die. And this kid with them

-Have you no heart?!-yelled Taiyang

-I commenced. Let's go. Gwynbleidd is no more. We still have a report to write-said Raven and Nick felt as she and two others walk away. Seconds after that he heard as the last person walks up to him and kneels near his head

-You can't give up, sweetie-said Summer-you need to keep moving forward

Nick then felt as she places her hands on his head gently and suddenly felt as he regains strength. Slowly...

-Nick, come on! Open your eyes!

And so Van Thorne did. He was where he fainted. He could feel the cold metal floor of the CCT tower. What intrigued him more, on the other hand, were the first faces he saw when he woke up:

-Qrow? Taiyang?-he asked, seeing familiar faces standing above him

-Finally-said Ruby's father-thought you'll never wake up. What the hell happened here?

-Some kind of a smoke bomb fell down the stairs. If I remember right, it was...oneiric miasma

-A what?-Qrow seemed confused

-Geist's ectoplasm mixed with King Taijitu's scale juice emits a purple gas that causes instant sleep and nightmares. But...that was a secret Hexman recipe! Who could think of doing that miasma by themselves?

-Whoever it was, we'll surely take care of them-said Qrow and turned Nick's head towards the stairs. The entire army from Haven was there, waiting for him

-Let's get this son of a bitch then!-yelled Nick. Everyone on the stairs roared with approval. Among all these faces Nick noticed Yang, who was looking at him with tears in her eyes.

It didn't take long until Lahilla's soldiers attacked the people of Haven. As the battle on the stairs was escalating with violence, Nick and William kept charging forward, murdering every soldier on their way, or just jumping off their heads. At some point they left the entire battle behind:

-Think they can deal with them?-asked Will

-Have some faith-said Nick and smiled-they'll keep moving forward

-Seraphimovich should be right in that hall-said William-why is it so dark here, though?

-Stay back, it might be an ambush! Just like with that miasma!-said Nicholas

-It's no ambush actually. You're already busted!-suddenly a voice echoed throughout the entire hall. Big metal bars hit the ground right between William and Nick. The Hexman was still in the dark hall. But shortly after that the lights were switched on and Nick realized the terrifying fact.

An entire horde of Lahilla's soldiers were standing in a combat formation, several meters away from Nick, with their weapons drawn. They were all aiming at him. Suddenly he noticed a speaker on the corner of the ceiling behind the soldiers. This is where the voice from before suddenly yelled:

-Fire!

A swarm of bullets left the rifles of Lahilla's soldiers. Nick tried to cover himself with his hands, but suddenly his skin started to burn him. It was red Dust. "I need to do something. Otherwise I'm dead" he desperately thought as he grabbed a hold of his guns and started to shoot back. But the bullets were already piercing his skin, the pain was getting unbearable. It actually made Nick scream. He never experienced such burns before (maybe except the ones in Gwynbleidd). William kept hitting the bars with his fists, but couldn't get past them.

Suddenly, Nick fell onto the ground. His vision started to fade. The fire from Lahilla's rifles stopped. He was beginning to think this is where he'll end. In the distance he could hear as Yang, who suddenly caught up with Will, calls him out through her tears, as she tries to punch out the bars herself. But Nick instead looked to his left, where a big window was overlooking the peaceful looking city of Mistral. It was almost dawn. Nick could see as the sun rises from the horizon...

When suddenly he heard a weird noise outside of the window. At first he thought it might be birds, but suddenly a big black shape raised to the height of where he was. Nick looked closer. It seemed like a flying machine. But it wasn't an Atlesian ship or a standard Bullhead. Instead, it was a machine Nick thought didn't already exist. "A tiltrotor?" he thought, confused. At that moment William heard that sound too and suddenly his entire appearance got brighter:

-It's him! It's Stephen! He's back! Look, everyone! It's Stephen!

-What the hell?!-yelled Nick with the rest of his strength

Suddenly the tiltrotor that appeared let out a weird sound...and in the next seconds another swarm of bullets started to fill the hall. Nick laid low trying not to get hit by any bullet, but the storm absolutely wiped out the entire horde of Lahilla's soldiers. They were all turned into a bloody mash and so did the entire line of windows as the tiltrotor was slowly turning as it was shooting the place up. Once it stopped it proceeded to land inside the hall. It landed without a scratch. Nick was utterly confused. At that moment Yang packed a punch so hard at the bars they snapped in half. The entire crew ran in only to stop when suddenly the doors to the weird machine opened. From the cockpit came out, dressed in characteristical white/pink/brown outfit and pilot goggles:

-Tadam!-giggled Neo as she made a sexy pose on the little staircase to the tiltrotor

The ice cream girl from the western Mistral quickly ran down the stairs. She held her umbrella in her hands. All the people from Haven, including William, got quiet like a tomb Nick was still looking in shock, refusing to pass away:

- _"Trzymaj się._ _Pomoc już wychodzi z kokpitu"_ -she told Nick after crouching near him

Indeed, Nick could hear as two people come towards the exit from the tiltrotor. He noticed them after a while.

One of them was a curvy girl with short, ashen-black hair and bright amber eyes. However, one of them was covered with the majority of one of the sides of her face with a black mask. She also had a hurtful looking scar that seemed to be hidden in that mask, but was extending itself into a slight x-shape over the bridge of her nose. She was wearing a long, dark red dress with one long, wide sleeve hiding her left arm. The edges of the collar and the opening for the right arm were gold-colored, and the upper chest and left sleeve were decorated with golden designs. The right side of her dress was open from the hip down with two gold-colored straps made up of interwoven ropes connecting the front half to the back half across her thigh. Under the dress, she appeared to wear black pantyhose. On the right hip, the dress had a black rhombus-shaped gem set in gold-colored metal of the same shape, with feathers of varying shades of blue extending from the bottom of it. On her right arm, she was wearing a long, gray glove, the top of which had a gold-colored metal ring with curvy branching extensions going up her arm.

The other girl had medium-brown skin and dark-red eyes. Her hair was a light, mint-green cut with a straight fringe and bangs, as well as two long locks on each side, in the back. She wore two bronze-colored rings on her middle fingers as well as a pair of high-heeled shoes. She also wore an intricate white top and a shallow-cut olive-colored undershirt, accompanied by white shorts, decorated with what appeared to be a gold coin-plated belt, with four gold chains draping around her back from two of the coins and what seems to be a green loincloth. She was also wearing white pants and brown chaps that ended at her calves and an overlong belt, twice-wrapped.

Nick was utterly confused. He completely didn't know what to say. At that moment the girl with the mask crouched near him. She stretched out her hands and placed them on Nick's chest:

-Wha...-he tried to say

-Lay back-said the other girl-don't say a word

For a while, Nick felt as warmth of his body comes back to him. When he looked upon himself, he was glowing amber and his head was held by that strange girl with mint-green hair on her knees. At that time Neo was observing with her umbrella drawn. She was constantly smiling at Nick. The girl that was touching his chest, on the other hand, seemed very focused and determined:

-Are you done?-asked the girl that was holding Nick's head

The girl with the mask just shook his head. Nick started to feel as he comes back to life...when suddenly he could hear yells from a close distance:

-ACPD! Down on the ground! Hands behind your back! You're under arrest-Captain Jeff Halla was yelling as he, Ironwood, Jacques and Winter were violently subduing Neo and the 2 girls that came out of the cockpit. Once Nick stopped being under the mysterious healing spell he felt weak again. But this time he didn't feel death, he was just tired and was blacking out. The last thing he remembered from Mistral's CCT tower was when William ran up to him:

-We did it, Nick! We did it!-he was yelling

-William, where's Stephen?-asked Nicholas

-Right next to you, look!-yelled with joy William and pointed at the tiltrotor. With the last bits of his strength he looked at the front of the machine and read what was written there-AW609 "Stephen"

-Fuck...you...Willy-the Hexman managed to mumble

And then he passed out.

 **("Nie" means "No" in Polish. "Chędoż się" means "Go fuck yourself" in old Polish. "Masz fajne cycki" literally means "You've got nice tits" in Polish, please don't use that as a pickup line and please don't ban me. The line in Polish sang by Merlot is from a song titled "Dzieci" performed by a Polish satirical rock band called "Elektryczne Gitary", all credit goes to them. The line said by Neo literally means "Hold on. Help is already coming out of the cockpit")**


	13. The quarantine

This time, when Nick woke up, he felt the pain. Even though the bed he was in was comfortable, even though he wasn't blinded by any light when he opened his eyes, he still felt as if the bullets were still hitting him. The burns were still there. Fading, but still. When his head stopped feeling as if it was spinning he looked around only to see needles stuck under his skin, that were attached to a IV bag filled with glowing bright blue liquid. Suddenly he heard the doors opening:

-Ah, you've awakened! Thank Maidens!-said a voice from nearby

Nick slowly turned his head. It was one of the paramedics he remembered from Mikaelsen's outburst:

-Where...

-You lie down, don't speak. The ice flower decoction hasn't fully healed you yet. The main doctor should be here in no time

Nick responded only with a confused look:

-Oh, you don't remember anything? Well, you were brought in a giant tiltrotor in critical condition. You were mostly suffering from 4th degree burns, but we discovered that the Red Dust drilled itself under your muscles and started to turn your blood vessels into a kettle. We had to act quickly so we injected you with ice flower. Unfortunately shards of these damn crystals got stuck and still threatened your life. We've put you on the operating table and got rid of the shards. I'm actually disappointed to know that the legendary Hexmen don't have anything different in their organs except for slightly bigger lungs...among other things.

Nick's eyes got wider. He suddenly felt sick. The paramedic acted quick and when Van Thorne threw up, everything landed in a small bowl he put near his mouth.

The Hexman felt seriously sick. The burning stopped being a problem. Now he was concerned about how cold he was getting. He knew what an ice flower is from alchemy classes and he knew that, if too much is injected, you might catch a flu or quinsy. "I hate doctors" he thought to himself as he was slowly raising his head, refusing to look at what he threw up:

-Ah, there you are! I've been expecting you!-said the paramedic all of a sudden

And, actually, the other paramedic entered the room. However, he wore a typical white lab coat, unlike the other guy who wore his paramedical glowing red outfit (let's call him paramedic and the other one the doctor):

-I see the Hexman is safe and sound-said the doctor, smiling-how are you feeling?

-Like shit-replied Nick

-Oh good!-cheered the guy in the lab coat-that means the ice flower is working! After all, a cold surely is not as big of a problem to you as the 4th degree burns you had. Yuck, they looked really nasty

-Thanks for the feedback, doc-said Van Thorne sarcastically

-Hey bro, how are the others?-asked the paramedic

-Impatient as always-replied the doctor-especially that blondie from Beacon. She even threatened to punch me in the face if I don't tell her how he feels. She really creeped me out. I'm really relieved that cat Faunus stopped her on time

-What about that old cyborg guy? The one the tiltrotor's pilot brought?

-Oh he's fine. Except for the fact that the remroot mixed itself with the oil in his implants and he had hallucinations for a short time. Nothing too serious, he just thought he's a butterfly

-I see. Well, I think we can allow the people from Haven to visit him now that he feels better

-Wait a second!-said Nick

-Yes, Hexman?-asked the doctor

-What happened to the 2 women that were attacked by Atlas' military? Do you know, perhaps?

-Wow, where the hell have you been for the past couple of months? First of all, Halla's guys caught more than these 2 women. They caught 3 members of the White Fang, 2 of them were confirmed to be among the invaders of Vale. They also caught Marcus Black's son and the mute lady that worked for Torchwick

-Why wasn't he arrested though?-asked the paramedic

-You don't know? This guy we treat on this bed managed to convince him, a notorious Dust shop robber, to save a part of the city from riots. Tromberg herself stood up for him

-Oh really?-said the paramedic

-Yep. And the biggest success is these 2 women. One of them is a cunning jewelry thief and a pickpocket, nothing too amazing. The other one, on the other hand...she's gonna be sentenced to death for 100%. You won't believe this but she...murdered a Maiden!

-No way!-yelled the paramedic

-Doctor, not to be rude, but can you please get the fuck out?-said Nicholas all of a sudden. He couldn't listen anymore to these two guys

-Oh, sorry. Forgot you're still here. Let's go, doctor-said the paramedic and left the room. The doctor followed him

Nick felt even worse. Due to the fact he was so focused on vengeance and because William had a stupid idea he was now stuck in Mistral's hospital. This is the sickest he's been for a long time. He threw up to the bowl yet again. This time he didn't immediately raise his head, but stared into the abyss of what came out of him. He still felt dizzy and had nausea, but his stomach wasn't giving any urgent signals. He slowly laid his head back on the pillow and tried to not think about the pain, but then the door opened again. He opened his eyes. It was William:

-Not in the mood-said Nick

-I know you're pissed off about that-replied the cyborg and took off his top hat

-How would I not be? You've been panicking for 3 days, scared of Schnees like an abused mongrel, made tons of people risk their lives, including mine. It was the first time in years I thought I'll actually die! And for what? For a fucking old school flying machine!

-I am really sorry, Nick. But Schnee really threatened to arrest me if I lose Stephen

-Jacques had no interest in you. He wanted to get me

-What?

-Auntie Glynda told me. The Schnees were after Seraphimovich, just like you and me. It wasn't a coincidence they hired you. They must have somehow figured out that we know each other. That tiltrotor may have been the reason he found us. There might have been a tracking device in it

-So why did we accuse Weiss of all this?

-I don't know, man-Nick went silent for a second. William kept staring at him in awkward silence

-You look almost like that wall behind you-said the cyborg after a while

-Tell me about it. I wake up, treated with ice flower out of all the things, I throw up twice, and the first thing I learn is that a couple of my friends were arrested, my girlfriend almost punched a doctor and Merlot got stoned. By the way, how does he feel, actually? Have you visited him?

-Well, I guess you could call it a visit. I mean I came to his room but couldn't talk to him at all. He's sleeping after all these hallucinations. I guess I would sleep too if I went on a trip like that. He even thought I stole his face, isn't that just crazy?

-No offense but...you'd be the first guy I'd think of if I had to call out someone who steals faces

At that moment both Nick and Will heard a noise behind the door:

-Whoa, whoa! Slow down there! The patient has one guest already, you can't...-the boys heard the doctor yelling

-I don't care! I've been waiting long enough! Now back the hell off!-yelled back some female voice. Nick recognized it, but it wasn't Yang. It was mature and actually cold, even when it was yelling

-Oooops, I think I should take my leave-said William and quickly ran up to the window and jumped out of it. After a while Nick heard his friend's impact on the ground and some more footsteps until he was gone

The door to the room opened and Nick saw a guest he sure as hell didn't expect at this time:

-Winter?-he asked

-Well, look at you. You almost seem like nothing happened to you, except for the lack of clothes-replied Schnee's older daughter

At that moment Nick realized he's got absolutely nothing on. He grabbed the cover he was under and pulled it higher up:

-Don't you worry, it's not my private visit yet. I just need some answers from you, since you seem like you got your voice back-said Winter

-Ok, but I need some answers from you as well-replied Nick, shivering a little once the adult Schnee sat down on his bed

-You do honor the rule "ladies first", right?-said Winter and smiled

-I guess...

-Good. Then first of all, tell me: What is your connection to the group you've met during the illegal motorcycle race in the eastern Mistral?

-I don't know which group you're talking about

-Adam Taurus, Fabian Tukson, that dude with permanent mask and Mercury Black. How do you know them and what were you doing with them near the Mistral's CCT tower?

-We were investigating

-Investigating what?

-Traces

-What traces?

-Traces of Lahilla

-Nicholas Van Thorne, I am going to slap you if you don't give me the true details right now!

-At least you warned me, Winty

Suddenly Nick felt pain in one of his cheeks. Winter fulfilled her threat, raised her hand and slapped him across the face:

-I've gotta say...this has to be one of the most embarrassing hits I've ever received. Still, it was cute to see you angry

-That wasn't anger...not yet. It was to clear your mind. Now tell me what I need to know in this very moment

-Come on, Winter. Did that little date at "The Informatory" the two of us had got you this upset?

The older Schnee then looked at Nick, genuinely hurt. Van Thorne then noticed a tear is forming in her eye...and he started to feel sorry for her. Even though he was still angry at her for brutally subduing those unknown girls at the CCT tower with Jeff Halla and others he actually stopped, seeing how upset she is:

-Nick, "The Informatory" was the best thing that has ever happened to me...-she said

-I know

-But you also know that I was put in charge of tracking down the leader of Lahilla...

-I know

-And you also know that the waitress that served us is actually a wanted contract killer? That the guys you met during the race destroyed Beacon, that the girl that was supposedly healing you is actually wanted for slaying a Maiden?

-I know

-And yet you cover them...why?

-I don't want people to die for me. Not anymore. I refuse to see blood spilled in my name

-But they will, whether you like it or not. You can't stop it. What you can do, though, is to answer my questions. I promise you, I will do my best to prevent Ironwood from sending your friends to Atlas

-You do?

-Yes-after these words Winter grabbed Nick gently by one hand, stuck out one of his fingers and grabbed it with one of her fingers-I pinky swear it

-Then it just might be true-laughed Nick, half-smiling at that little gesture Winter did

-Alright then...-said the Schnee and released her hand-now you're gonna answer my questions. Remember, there are no wrong answers and you will not have this data exposed to anyone if it's not essential to the investigation

-I hope so-said Nick quietly as Winter was taking out a notepad from her uniform's pocket

-So, back to my question. What happened in eastern Mistral? Before we arrived?

-We were at an illegal race. I took a part in it. I won, received a golden statue and William won 450 thousand Liens from a bet he made

-We knew about that money. William offered it to cover your medical bill, turned out it was just enough for all the transport of ice flower, your transport to the hospital, all the surgeons, doctors and nurses and even for the guards who stood by your door, preventing the whole crowd from rushing in like a stampede

-So I'll just walk out of this hospital without receiving this gigantic bill?

-Yes, I mean no. You won't be paying anything, but there's a lot of explaining you'll need to do

-Like what?

-During the attack on the CCT tower you and William encountered a convicted criminal from long ago, doctor Merlot. I was trying to interrogate him as well, but he was still too stoned to talk normally. What I do know is that you injected him with a truth serum. What for? Did you take any information about Lahilla out of him?

-Not just any information, Winter-replied Nick-we actually found out the Masked Fox's identity

Winter dropped her pen when she heard that. She quickly picked it up and looked at Nick, shocked:

-Oh my gosh. That's like, something we've been searching for ages. Give me quickly the name and I'll make sure to get you any reward you want for such information

-Thomas Seraphimovich

-Got it. Now, what would you like in exchange? A medal, a bank vault in Atlas, a house?

-2 things-replied Nick and smirked-one, I want to personally capture the Masked Fox

-Okay, that can be done. And the other one?-asked Winter. Nick's smile grew wider

-Come a bit closer

Winter moved a little bit closer to Nick when he suddenly grabbed her by the hand and pulled closer to himself. Just when she thought she's gonna fall over the bed he was on, she suddenly felt Nick's lips on hers. She immediately felt helpless. The world around her started to get foggy. But then Nick let her go and she regained her senses:

-What have you done?-said Winter, gasping and blushing. You'd think someone like her would be unable to go even slightly red, but she looked like a communist flag and her voice was stuttering so much she wasn't speaking, but squeaking

-Claimed my prize for giving useful information-replied Nick, still smiling widely

-You...you've invaded...an Atlesian representative's...personal space...idiot!-Winter was still stuttering

-Yes, ma'am, I've done a terrible crime, I deserve to be cuffed-said Nick with a sarcasm

-It's not funny! I...I...I'll go and check in with Ironwood about your friends. You get dressed, I've put a bag with your clothes under your bed. The discharge card should be on the registration desk. And, for crying out loud, try not to give me more reasons to really put you in handcuffs

-I'll try-said Nick as Winter was slamming the door behind her. For a second Nick could hear as her high-heeled boots quickly move her across the corridor.

About 2 and a half hour later Nick was fully dressed and was putting last signatures on the discharge card. Once he did that he went through the front door, out to face the bright day.

The hospital was located in the district, where the communists protested. From where Nick was standing he could see Haven, so he went in its direction. He knew that Tromberg won't let him do more lessons with her students. He was also pretty sure that he's gonna receive a punch in the face from some of his friends. In general, he knew he's not going to be welcomed with open arms in the academy. But that was the only place he could think of.

Suddenly, in the distance, he saw a motorcycle going right towards him. It wasn't his chopper, it was a more toned motorcycle in yellow and orange colors. For some reason Nick thought like he knows who's the driver of this bike.

And so it did. The motorcycle stopped right in front of Nick. The driver left the seat and slowly approached the Hexman. He then took off the helmet...revealing a storm of blonde locks and a pair of shiny lilac eyes:

-Need a ride?-asked Yang

-You know me too well-replied Van Thorne and gently embraced his girlfriend. As they both were hugging like that in the middle of a pavement, with people constantly walking past them, Nick suddenly felt as his shoulder starts getting wet

-I thought I've lost you-Yang was tearing up

-I live, thanks to you-replied Nick. He too felt so happy to see his girlfriend he felt as a tear leaves his eye and goes down the blonde girl's back

-Me? I wasn't even strong enough to carry you to the hospital

-I wouldn't dare to ask you that

After that they kissed and went on Yang's motorcycle. Nick tried to convince her he doesn't need a helmet, but she insisted, since she was so concerned. Once Yang started the engine and they started to slowly drive towards Haven, the blonde-haired girl asked a question Nick suspected she might ask:

-Nick, please tell me something. Why did you side with such...criminals? I could understand Torchwick and Junior but...Adam, Mercury, Merlot? You're not trying to join them, are you?

-No, but...I have a debt I owe to Adam. It's of ancestral size. Long ago he and his family saved my great-grandfather's life, I couldn't turn down his help. But mark my words, for every finger he lays on you I'll break one of his bones

-Now I understand. And why did you side with Mercury?

-I had no idea he works for Cinder. All he said was that "his boss wants to meet me". That might refer to Cinder, but...what could she possibly want with me?

-Now if she lays a finger on you, I'm gonna snap her neck

-I can imagine. Hey Yang, tell me...what are the others thinking? Do they see me as a traitor?

-Nah, not at all. Well...Jaune's been trying to change that but Pyrrha made sure he doesn't. Damn, now that I think of it, she was seriously violent. About two to four months ago you'd think she and Jaune would get married or something, but now she slams his head into a bench whenever he calls you names. Incredible, how grateful some people can be for saving theirs or others' lives sometimes

-And others?

-Others think you made a temporary alliance

-And you think?

-I think that you know what you're doing and that if you wanted to betray us you'd have already done that. Pyrrha and Blake think the same thing

After Yang finished her sentence they arrived at the entrance of Haven. They got off the bike, took off their helmets and proceeded inside the academy.

At first it didn't seem like anything has changed. On the corridor, students were passing them without any particular interest. Yang was leading him through a passage he already managed to memorize. It led right into team ABRN's room. His room as well.

The entire team was doing their usual stuff. Nadir was reading, Bolin was meditating, Arslan was drying her hair and Reese was lying on the bed, playing some game on her scroll. When the door opened they just slightly raised their sight. But, upon seeing Nick, Nadir dropped his book:

-Oh my gosh-he said

At that moment Yang covered her ears because both Arslan and Reese screamed so loud from joy probably everyone could hear them back then. In a matter of seconds Nick was holding in his embrace two girls and was being patted on both arms by Nadir and Bolin. Yang stood by the door with a wide smile. It seemed as if team ABRN was really loud as suddenly doors to two rooms opened and immediately after that someone landed on Nick, tightly hugging him. It was Ruby, and with her came Weiss, Blake, Pyrrha, Ren, Nora, team SSSN and even Jaune. Team ABRN's room then became very crowded with people either hugging or patting Nick in the arms. The Hexman was in bliss. All those people were making him happy by being there with him. All of that motivated him even more to cherish and protect them. Especially her. She kept standing there, in that crowd, with her lilac eyes constantly observing him, smiling with honesty. At some point Nick felt as he's being lifted in the air and taken out to the corridor. Shockingly, among the people who were carrying him, was Jaune. Nick kept getting more and more suspicious about what was happening. Then suddenly he heard someone yelling on the corridor:

-What's that farce about?!

He looked forward from where he was. It was Tromberg, accompanied by Ironwood and the remaining Schnees-Jacques, Whitley and their butler, Klein. Apart from them there also stood Jeff Halla, who was typing something on his scroll:

-Well, well...it's nice to see you in one piece, Van Thorne-said the headmistress of Haven. The entire group went silent and put Nick down on the ground

-Oh please. We didn't want to interrupt you. Just like you, we are glad to see our friend here alive. But...duty's calling. Nicholas, if your friends excuse me, I'd like to have a word with you-said Ironwood

-Go, we'll prepare some welcoming for you at the canteen-said Ren

Ironwood took Nick to stairs which were leading into basement of Haven. If it was used properly it could serve as a temporary prison. Once he opened the doors with his keycard he looked at Nick as they were both going across the corridor:

-I received your message from Winter. My men have found Seraphimovich's file. Real scumbag, untouchable for the police because of the riches his father made on Dust quarries during the Great War. Not just him but his men are notoriously known for 90% of crimes on Mantle. Contraband, murders, rapes, arsons, not to mention frauds and thefts, that's routine for them. Now that he's been declared the new leader of Lahilla there is a huge chance they might become a worldwide threat yet again. Your friend, William, he told us about that female scientist doctor Merlot mentioned, but we haven't accessed any data of Seraphimovich that would lead us to a female scientist, which means it's a new deal he set up once he put on the arch enemy's mask and became the leader of Lahilla. All I know is that compared to him Torchwick and even those White Fang criminals you were seen with are merely puppets in his theater of tragedy

-Okay, so I know about Seraphimovich, but what about the other thing Winter was supposed to tell you about?

-You do know I cannot let those people free, they have way too big crimes in their files

-Oh gimme a fucking break, James! There's an international political syndicate threatening the stability of all our kingdoms and you are worried about those, as you called, puppets?

-Those puppets are responsible for contract killing, robberies all across our kingdoms, destruction of the entire city of Vale and murdering a Maiden. That's what Lahilla benefits from and that's why I will not let them go

-Lahilla is their enemy as well! I saw it

-Even if I wanted to let them free just so they defeat Lahilla, immediately after that they'd do to Mistral the same thing they did to Vale

-You really think so? And what do you base your theory on? You've clearly spent too much time behind a desk creating ridiculous theories. I personally experienced and saw the crimes of those you hold in this prison. I saw as the contract killer serves ice cream to her customers with a wide smile. I saw as those who destroyed Vale try to prevent the world's biggest public enemy from oppressing citizens of eastern Mistral. I saw as the woman who murdered a Maiden puts her powers to good use. You rely way too much on written data, general Ironwood, just like every last one of your soldiers

-Speaking of soldiers...I've just came up with an idea, a sort of compromise that would benefit both of us. If you contribute to compensation of all the damages our prisoners caused I promise I'll let them go and will not send them to Atlas

-How much?

-20 thousand Liens

-I do not have that much

-You have time until next Friday-said Ironwood and stopped all of a sudden

-Can I at least see them before I start gathering this money?

-Of course, that's why I brought you here. Right now we're standing by Mrs. Fall's cell. I'll send someone down here to open the door for you once you end your visit. Just be careful as she's the most dangerous of all. She was the one who killed the Maiden

-You don't need to worry about me-replied Nick. Ironwood patted him on the arm and pressed something on the panel of the cell to open its doors. Nick walked in and Ironwood closed the cell behind him.

Nick landed in a dark cell, with only one lightbulb inside. But it was enough for him to notice the person he wanted to visit.

Cinder was sitting on the cell's bed, glaring at her visitor with her only eye. Nick couldn't possibly tell what she was trying to express with her look, but he didn't feel safe. Something menacing was radiating from her. Van Thorne swallowed saliva in fear and slowly walked up closer to her. Her eye kept following him with every step. At last, when he sat down next to her, he took a deep breath before starting probably one of the hardest conversations he was ever going to make:

-So...you are the infamous Cinder Fall...-he awkwardly started

She just waved her arms in a strange way as if she wanted to say a sarcastic "yay".

-Mercury told me you'd like to meet me, so...here I am

Cinder just glared at him, smiling for a split-second.

-I've never imagined you'd look so...different

She raised her eyebrow in confusion.

-Not that I'm suggesting anything, you're still unique in some way

Cinder gently punched Nick in the arm and did a gesture with her hand on her lips, as if she wanted to tell him to shut up. It was at this moment Nick realized the terrible truth behind Cinder's "unique" look.

-Oh, you cannot speak? Oh man, I'm so sorry. I didn't know. I uhhhhh...I should get someone who can understand sign language

Nick tried to stand up from Cinder's bed but she suddenly grabbed him gently by the hand as if she wanted to say "stay". Nick, embarrassed, sat back down on the girl's bed and immediately felt upset for his ignorance. Suddenly he felt as Cinder pulls up the sleeve of his coat and sweater.

-What are you doing?-he asked, but she only put a finger on her lips and continued to pull his sleeve. Once she stopped, Nick noticed a little scar from one of the burns he received from Lahilla's guns on the opposite site of his elbow. Cinder put two of her fingers on that scar and she suddenly got surrounded by an amber aura. Nick felt as a little warm pulse starts to move into his elbow, slowly reducing the scar into nothingness. Once Nick's scar vanished Cinder stopped glowing and wobbled, grabbing her head. He gently held her by the arms so that she doesn't fall (no pun intended) on the bed too rapidly.

-Whoa, relax!-he said

Shortly after that Cinder managed to pull herself together and she pulled down his sweater and coat's sleeves back where they were. "She risks her consciousness, maybe even life, for my sake. Why is she doing this? I will not find out unless she tells me herself. I'll have to repay her" he thought:

-Could you be still for a minute?-he asked and reached out his hand

When Cinder realized Nick is trying to grab her eyepatch, she rapidly caught his hand:

-No, please. Let me see that-said Nick in a very calm tone

It seemed like it convinced Cinder because she let go of his hand and let him touch her eyepatch. Once Nick lifted it slightly up...he was frightened:

-By the Maidens, who did this to you?-gasped Nick

Cinder pointed to her left, shedding tears from her only eye. When Nick looked in that direction, he was even more shocked.

With something that can graze metal Cinder etched a symbol on one of the cell's walls. After getting a closer look at it, Nick was 100% sure that this symbol was a burning rose. He didn't want to believe it:

-Ruby?-he asked himself and looked at the wound the silver-eyed girl left under Cinder's eyepatch. He was in total shock as he was letting the Maiden's killer go. For a second he sat there debating how come such an innocent looking girl not only frozen a giant Grimm dragon but managed to literally melt one of that girl's eyes and leave a gigantic scar across her face in a shape of an "X". Once he calmed down his thoughts a little bit he turned to the still quietly sobbing Cinder:

-I'm not leaving you in such state-he said-I will not accept it

Cinder raised her sight at him, confused.

-I will have to risk immediate loss of balance with that, but I don't care-he kept saying-I'm gonna be doing an Ancestration on you, Cinder. Without the incense. Nobody's ever done that before me...I'll have to be careful

Cinder was utterly confused, but she didn't protest, when Nick slowly put his hands on her cheeks.

-"Through hardships of life, now forever condemned, I summon the ancestral spirits from within. Heed my command, heal forever this flesh and may our agreement be sealed with this sacrifice"-he chanted. Cinder, upon hearing that, gently grabbed him by his arms.

A grey light filled the entire cell. It was coming from Cinder. Nick was watching in awe as her eyepatch goes flying and her second eye regains shape and is brought back to its former life. After that he noticed that the "X" scar started to fade, leaving her face smooth only in her skin color. Next he suddenly felt as her hair gets longer and fully regains its ashen color. Cinder was healed, but there was one thing left. Nick found out why she wasn't speaking. Her voice strings were completely damaged. Thus, he did what he had to do:

-Let us complete this ritual, ancestors-he said and gently pulled Cinder by her chin to himself...and planted a kiss on her lips. In any other circumstance it would be considered a regular kiss, but this one was for Nick to complete the ritual. Once he did that, Cinder felt as her throat stops aching, her voice slowly comes back, and her tongue doesn't feel swollen anymore. The ritual was complete. Nick was awaiting Cinder's first words.

But didn't receive them as when Cinder pulled herself together after such shock and stopped being confused, she just looked at Nick, now with a pair of shiny amber eyes. She smiled widely at the Hexman, sharing her smile with him for the first time...

And then Nick felt her lips yet again. This time, she dominated. Nick could feel as her newly regenerated tongue intertwines with his in a deep, passionate kiss. He couldn't process what was happening. At that point both him and Cinder lost their minds, focused only on what was happening right there, right now.

But unfortunately Nick soon regained his common sense and managed to gently lay Cinder off his lips. She had her tongue entirely covered in saliva. Nick couldn't help it and went extremely red on his face, just like Winter when he kissed her at the hospital. When Cinder was out of her trance as well, she giggled. It was the first time Nick heard her voice:

-That's why I wanted to meet you-she said. Her voice sounded seductive, but on a completely different level. When Yang, Pyrrha or Blake were trying to sound seductive, besides having a little giggle before giving in, Nick knew that they weren't doing their normal voices. With Cinder it was a completely different case. Her voice was deep, seductive, menacing and...It actually hypnotized Nick. It was a temptation delivered in the most powerful form, something Nick never knew existed. He wanted to stay longer and get to know Cinder better, but then he remembered his duty:

-I uhhhhh...I gotta go now, but...I'll be back...so uhhhhh...don't go anywhere, okay? Hehe-he said, stuttering awkwardly while moving towards the exit of Cinder's cell

-Of course, love. I already miss you-said Cinder with her seductive voice, while making a sexy pose on her cell's bed

While waiting for the guard to open the door, only one thought was going through Nick's mind-"Just don't let her see your boner, don't let her see your boner"

-I'm saved. Ahahahahahahahahaha-Nick started to nervously laugh once he left Cinder's cell. After that he quickly moved towards the exit, trying to calm down his erection at all costs.

Fortunately, once he reached the canteen, he didn't seem like someone who just had the best visit at the prison ever.

His welcome party was amazing. Ren made a ton of pancakes and even let Nick put his autograph on them with chocolate syrup. Once Qrow arrived, he brought a lot of booze. Fortunately, not many people were drinking hard at that party. Nick was just talking to team SSSN with a glassful of wine and soon the party was starting to end. Everyone was slightly drunk, but not enough to be unable to walk. Only Nick and William were practically sober. They were sitting by the table, where most of the party was taking place, and talking:

-So you say we need 20 thousand Liens to get them all out?-said William

-Exactly. It has to be paid by next Friday

-Well...there is something I wanted to tell you about anyway

-Go on then. If it's related to this topic it could only help our situation

-Have you ever heard of "The Blue Lotus"?

-The international humanitarian organization? I think so, yeah

-Well, ever since we interfered in Mistral's liberation from all these riots, Tromberg's been trying to contact the completely isolated northern Mistral. Finally she succeeded and it turns out it's worse than we thought. They suffer from a disease outbreak. The quarantine alarm was at level 3. Now the Lotus is there, trying to provide help for the sick and asylum for the clear. The thing is...it's not a normal disease. Subjects that are infected lose all sorts of rational thought, grow extra limbs and symptoms and become completely savage

-Now I see why this district was so isolated

-Yeah, but this is where we jump right in. They're looking for mercenaries to escort their volunteers during their searches for survivors

-The volunteers don't have their own weapons?

-They do, but unfortunately it's impossible for them to use them once they get a survivor and transport him back to the main tent

-Okay, how much do they pay?

-I don't know, but they pay extra if you contribute to development of the cure. Oh and besides money...remember what Merlot said?

-Not much

-"Mistral is gonna be Lahilla's first target practice. The Fox wanted the female scientist to spread the substitute anyway". I think it should be obvious that it's Lahilla's doing up north

-I'll look into that. You deal with the cure people. Let's go

Nick found his motorcycle near the entrance to Haven, waiting for him. He jumped on it with William, started the engine and dashed forward towards the northern Mistral.

Once they reached the area, they noticed a huge wall separating the contaminated district from the rest of the city. William read a big sign on the wall:

-"Don't infected open inside". The hell is that supposed to mean?

-It says "Don't open, infected inside". Read horizontally

-Oh, now it makes sense

But then, all of a sudden, the wall actually slightly opened, revealing it's a disguised as wall gate. Four people walked from behind the gate and once they did the gate closed itself. They were quickly walking towards Nick and William. Nick looked at them. Two girls and two guys.

One thing Nick immediately noticed about one of the girls was the fact that from her head a pair of long, brown rabbit ears were sticking out. Nick immediately blushed, remembering his experience with the Faunus so far. Other than that she was short, had long brown hair and eyes in the same color. As for the clothing, she was wearing a short, long-sleeved brown jacket with a golden zipper, brown pants and black leggings with golden detail, a black, semi-translucent undershirt beneath her jacket, along with golden spaulders and vambraces on both arms, as well as a similar belt. The tops of her leggings were edged with a similar band, and her heel and toe were likewise protected.

Next to her stood a different girl and she was definitely human. However, Nick still doubted if she really is because her eyes were hidden behind a pair of black, wire-rimmed aviator sunglasses. She was fair skinned and had short dark-brown hair. However, she also had wavy locks on one side of her face, dyed with a gradient that started in dark brown and transitioned to caramel. Her clothing really impressed Nick, making him think she must be a fashion designer at first. A long, cocoa-colored shirt with a dark brown waist cincher, dark brown trousers with ribbons on the left side and a brown belt with bullets, above it another cocoa-colored belt of bullets with a gold crosshairs buckle, a drape of a black skirt hanging on her right side, a pair of dark brown, high-heeled leather boots with buckles, a bracelet with black roses as decoration accompanied by black gloves and necklaces and even a beret on her head in the color of a darker brown-all these things were improving Nick's first impression on her.

The two girls were accompanied by two guys. Another thing Nick quickly noticed was that one of these guys was ridiculously tall. While Nick was around 6 feet and 2 inches tall, this guy seemed almost 7 feet tall. It was the first time Van Thorne felt...short.

The tallest guy was an athletic-looking young man with shaved-short black hair and tanned skin. He was wearing a long short-sleeved robe on one shoulder over a black muscle shirt, fastened at the waist by a leather armored belt with two pouches on it. He was also wearing brown pants and black-and-green boots. His left arm was bearing a 5-layer sode which extended up past his shoulder. He was also wearing a pair of bracers as well as a pair of black gloves with green plates on the backs.

The last guy Nick noticed had the weirdest eyes ever, even weirder than Neo. They seemed...soulless. Outside of that he was a teenage boy with dark skin and dark, messy copper hair that had a long fringe and a cowlick. His hands were covered in scars and there was a vertical one on his lips as well. He was wearing a sleeveless, muted orange zipper vest with black lining and a high collar, a pair of black jeans and brown, laced shoes. He was also wearing a pair of long black gloves and had several pouches attached to his belt.

These 4 people approached Nick and William. At first they were walking, but soon they started running. At some point the guy with soulless eyes disappeared and appeared behind Nick out of thin air. The very tall guy jumped over William's head and stood right behind him as well. At first both Van Thorne and Vengh wanted to draw their weapons, but the girl in sunglasses prevented them from it:

-I wouldn't do anything suspicious if I were you-she said in a confident voice. The Faunus girl, who was standing next to her, was staring at them, unsure what to do

-I was just...-said Nick but he didn't finish as the guy who stood behind him suddenly grabbed him by the wrist

-You both better explain yourself if you don't want to land in a trashcan-said the girl in sunglasses

-We received reports you're looking for mercenaries...you know, to escort the survivors?

The girl in sunglasses kept staring at Nick. A little later she smirked and pulled down her sunglasses a bit, revealing dark-brown eyes behind them. The guy behind Nick released his hand, making him feel relieved:

-You don't look like mercenary types. What can you even do? Behind this gate is an area infested by a plague and we're barely keeping up with the amount of atrocities it creates. You think your presence will change anything?-said the girl in sunglasses

-Well...-William started-I personally wanted to work on the cure for the plague. I have a degree given directly from doctor Merlot himself

-Merlot?-said the Faunus girl and walked up to the other girl and whispered something to her ear

Nick and William looked at each other, confused with what was going on:

-Well, that's one guy. But what about you? Why did you come here?-said the girl in sunglasses and pointed her finger at Nick

-Oh, me? Oh, nothing very important. I'm just a Hexman and it's my duty, blah blah blah you know the drill

The 4 people suddenly started to laugh very loud. The girl in sunglasses was particularly happy with that "joke". She walked up closer to Nick and patted him on the arm:

-Yeah, great joke. You know, I could take you with me just for the sheer amusement

-No, but I really am-said Nick and tried to take off his sunglasses but the guy behind him grabbed him by his both wrists this time

-Yeah, and I'm this year's Miss Vytal!-jokingly said the girl in sunglasses

-Well...aren't you?-said Nick, smiling nervously

At that moment he felt immediate pain in the crotch. The girl in sunglasses kicked him right there. At first he wanted to shout, but he bit his tongue on time and endured the pain. "What was that for?" he thought:

-Hey, what was that for?-asked William, since Nick was still in pain and couldn't say a word

-For being a liar-said the girl in sunglasses and pulled them down a bit, revealing her eyes to William

-Coco, stop-said the Faunus girl suddenly with a stressed voice

The guy with the soulless eyes then released Nick. The girl with sunglasses looked at the Faunus girl, who was then walking up to Nick. Once she did, with one swift move of her hand she took off Van Thorne's sunglasses:

-Look at him now. Don't you see anything different?-she asked

-Well...-the girl that was named Coco took off her sunglasses as well-he does have shiny eyes

-Oh, you're hopeless-said the Faunus girl to herself

-Velvet, what are you implying?-asked the tall guy, who walked up to her, away from William

-His aura, it...didn't feel right. For a second I thought I sense a Grimm somewhere around us. But then it turned out it was coming from him. And if you want to recognize a Hexman, look one in the eyes. His pupils will be narrow, like cat's or snake's

Nick then kneeled, because the pain was still there between his legs. He raised his head and saw all 4 people and William staring at him from above (especially that 7 feet tall guy):

-What did you say your name was?-asked Coco

-Nicholas Van Thorne-he mumbled

-So...Nicky-said the guy with soulless eyes

-I like that name-said Coco and smirked

-So now you trust us?-asked William

-I guess you managed to convince us after all-replied Coco-welcome to The Blue Lotus

-So...you said you wanted to work on the cure?-the tall guy asked William

-Yes. I'm William Vengh-said the cyborg

-Yatsuhashi Daichi-replied the tall guy-come with me. I'll show you the lab

William and the tall guy walked away. The girl in sunglasses and the guy with soulless eyes followed them. Only the Faunus girl stayed and stretched her hand to Nick:

-Are you alright?-she said, smiling

-I think so-said Nick as the Faunus girl was helping him get up from his knees

-I'm Velvet. Velvet Scarlatina-she said

-Nice to meet you-replied Nick-can you give me back my glasses?

-Oh sure. Here you go

-Thank you-said Nick and hid the sunglasses in his coat

-Come on. Let's go to the camp and settle in. We'll look for survivors tomorrow

Nick and Velvet went together further inside the gate that said "Don't open, infected inside". Once they were inside, Nick felt weird. The northern district of Mistral didn't seem like one devoured by a plague even though there were empty streets and all Nick could hear was the wind blowing. He then looked at his new companion:

-Velvet?

-Yes?

-What's wrong with your friends? They seem...strict because of something

-They've been working unpaid overtime for the last 2 months. Try not to be too harsh on them for that little scheme, please?

-I'll try, but...Coco and that guy with scars seem to hate me, if I'm honest

-Coco is like that to everyone she has never seen before. You'll see, one day she might even hug you

-That I seriously doubt

-And Fox...well, that's just in his nature. He'll get used to you sooner or later

-What about that tall dude? What was his name?

-Oh that's Yatsuhashi, but just call him Yats. He's friendly to everyone, so you'll both get along with him

-So that's everyone covered but you...-said Nick and smiled to Velvet

The Faunus girl blushed. Her ears shook a little bit:

-You have a lovely accent. Are you from Menagerie?-asked the Hexman

-West coast, born and raised. My father had Gwynbleiddean roots, though

-I can hear that as well, your accent sounds like western Gwynbleidd

-Are you from there as well? Oh what am I saying, of course you are

At that moment Nick and Velvet were already reaching the camp. He could see countless tents with either a red cross on them or the blue lotus that was in the logo of the organization he and William just joined. Velvet led him to a front one, which was one of the biggest. Coco, Fox and Yatsuhashi were already inside:

-I see you two reached us safe as well-said the girl in sunglasses-Nicky, before we go to sleep, we'll have to discuss some rules and terms around here

-Okay...-Nick was already turned off a bit

-We are, as you might have heard, officially a humanitarian organization. That means we help people. No shooting if it's not necessary. The 4 of us work here as volunteers so we don't get paid. For you and William to get your share you go to the main tent at the end of the camp. And finally, our searches. We get up at 6 a.m., we search for survivors and we come back at 4 p.m. the next day

-Understood-replied Nick

-Any questions?-asked Coco

-A few. First of all, what are we up against?

-A historical type, eh? Well, we're dealing here with a disease outbreak. Based on the look of the first symptoms of this disease we called it "The Numb Plague". The disease turns normal people into infected walking atrocities who possess inhuman abilities. The infected use their instincts, but can be strategic at times. So far we've encountered 7 types of infected, if you don't include those who haven't mutated yet. Bacterials have a ridiculously long tongue, Virusoids spit acid, Funguys can self-destruct into a shower of infected flesh and bones, Parasoids have two heads, Prionheads are short and can jump on our heads, Nanofucks can replicate themselves if you don't shoot their brains out and the worst ones are Bio Soldiers. We call them that because they have a sense of strategy. Other than that they are tall, even taller than Yatsuhashi, can throw big structures and we might end up severely crippled or dead if we run into one. Their weakness is that they're as wide as they are tall. So just keep shooting until they bleed out-Coco explained

-Ok so the zombies have their strategy. What is ours?

-That, my friend, is a good question!-said Fox-I suggest, for tomorrow's route, to use Velvet's idea. We'll go across the market, towards the shrine, and from there we'll take a passage through one of the alleys towards the harbor. Then across the harbor back to the camp

-Well...it might work-said Coco-but remember that we need to check that suspicious flat near the shrine. We've received 10 more complaints today and I don't want to see more of them

-Suspicious flat?-asked Nick

-Some survivors we took in keep mentioning that they heard music coming from one of the flats on our tomorrow's route. At first we thought they might experience trauma but there were more and more mentions and they always described the same sound. A dark ambient-like track's sound echoing throughout the corridor

-That really is suspicious

-Well...we're gonna worry about that tomorrow. For now let's have some sleep. Nick, the sofa in this tent will be your bed for tonight. We have our sleeping bags in our tents. We'll come for you at quarter to 6 so that you have some time to yawn-said Coco-goodnight

-Wait! Where's William?-asked Nick

-In the lab at the end of the camp, trying to make a cure for the plague. He said he's not going to sleep-said Yatsuhashi

After that all 4 people left the tent. Velvet was coming out last. Before leaving she turned to Van Thorne and smiled:

-Sweet dreams-she said and turned off the light in the tent

Nick immediately jumped on the sofa, took off his coat and covered himself with it. As he was closing his eyes, his scroll vibrated. He opened it and found out he received a text from:

-Winter?-he asked himself

He opened the text and read it. The more he was reading, the wider his eyes were getting:

"Nick, we need to talk. I can't sleep and it's all your fault". The text would have been simple if it ended with that phrase. But below the text Nick was presented with Winter's photo. Now Nick wouldn't be bleeding from his nose at that moment if on that photo Winter wasn't lying in her bed with just her lingerie on. His eyes were getting wide, his face was getting red and the blood kept running forth from his nose. With shaking hands he wrote a response:

"Can it wait?"

He sent the text and after a while he got a response:

"Okay, but it better not be too long"

And with that Nick fell asleep, relieved he won't need to deal with Winter again. He still didn't wipe his nose and the little streams of blood were still there.

He was woken up at the exact time Coco said they will come to the main tent:

-Ekhm-Nick heard a voice above him. He opened his eyes and saw Fox standing right above him

-Oh, hi there. Is it time?

-Yes it is-replied Fox and pointed at his watch-and you need to wipe your face. You look like you just overdosed on cocaine

-Do I look like a glam metal star?-asked Nick

-Not at all, but...-Fox pointed at his nose-you're bleeding

-Oh shit-said Nick after realizing the fact-you got a tissue or something?

-Yeah, here you go-said Yatsuhashi and passed Nick a tissue he had in his hand

Nick got up from the sofa and walked over to Coco and Velvet, who were standing around the tent as well:

-So...you're ready to go?-asked the girl in sunglasses

-Yeah, definitely-said the Hexman

The entire team left the tent and started to walk away from the camp, towards one of the market districts Mistral had. While they were walking there, Nick was observing his new companions. Coco was waving her purse in the air and Velvet had a bag attached to her belt along with a strange looking camera. Only Fox and Yatsuhashi had some weapons. Alistair had orange gauntlets with blades attached to his hands while Daichi had a huge sword on his back along with a nearly as big backpack. Suddenly Coco approached Nick with a half-smile. Van Thorne had a feeling this conversation is not gonna go well:

-Does it still hurt?-she asked while taking off her sunglasses

-What?-asked Nick

-You know what I'm talking about-she said, slightly stretching her vowels and rolling her eyes down a bit

-Eh?!-Nick whimpered, realizing what Coco means-why do you ask?

-Oh come on now, I asked you first-she said, suddenly getting way too close to him

-Ummmm...you're...invading my personal space, you know?-he said nervously

-Hey, Coco-said Fox all of a sudden-we reached the market

-Alright then. We're now splitting up and searching the area. Whose turn is it to set up a camp?

-Mine-said Yatsuhashi

-Okay. We're going in pairs. Velvet with me will go around the left side, Nick and Fox will go right. Yats, you stay, prepare a tent, food and campfire. We'll be back as fast as we can but if you get surrounded by more than 5 infected throw the flare

-Understood-said Daichi

-Alright then, let's go-said Coco

The team split up. The girl in sunglasses and the Faunus went together towards the flats on the left while Nick and Fox together went more to the right, towards the actual market stalls.

The market in northern Mistral seemed completely abandoned, yet both Van Thorne and Alistair could see that someone was there not long ago. It appeared that the disease struck the poor vendors at the worst time-during a flea market sale. Nick constantly looked upon his feet, careful not to crack anything that looked remotely close to what the vendors could sell at this market. It wasn't just an aesthetic reason. Before Fox and Nick went off, he said only one thing:

-Listen, this flea market is a mine field. One sound and we'll attract atrocities that live deeper in no time

That's why Nick was so careful. Unfortunately at some point both Nick and Fox heard slow footsteps nearby followed by long and a little inhuman grunts:

-Survivors?-asked Nick quietly

-Nope, infected. Not mutated yet, though. We're safe-replied Fox

Nick looked from behind a flipped counter where he and Alistair hid. The infected were a very sorry sight to see. In shriveled clothes, with long uncut fingernails, grey like a rainy cloud, with blood slowly dripping from their mouths they were almost crawling on two feet. Van Thorne drew his pistol and aimed it at one of the infected, but Fox immediately grabbed him by the wrist-something Nick didn't like in particular:

-What are you doing? Remember what Coco said. No shooting unless it's necessary

-Relax, Fox. I was drawing it just in case-replied Nick

-I hope you were-Alistair looked sadly at the infected-they already suffer enough because of this plague

-Okay, so what is our next move?-asked Van Thorne

-We'll move towards those cars over there. Beware though, as I can see some Bacterials there

Nick looked in the direction where Fox was pointing his finger. He then saw Bacterials for the first time.

These mutants, just like Coco said, had ridiculously long tongues. Nick could swear that they were even dragging them with them on the ground. Other than that their skin was blue and the tongues themselves-swollen. In addition, one of their eyes was covered by a gigantic, black tumor. Their only eye had no pupil, just like Fox. They were walking as if one of their legs was crippled. Nick then kind of felt like vomiting:

-Come on, let's go-said Alistair

Nick and Fox were slowly sneaking up towards delivery trucks that seemed like they were used in the flea market sale. Three Bacterials were dragging their tongues on the pavement surrounding the truck Fox chose to hide behind. Once Nick reached his partner, they started to talk:

-So, you really thought applying to us was a good idea?-asked the guy with soulless eyes

-I don't regret it yet-replied Nick

-Well that's just great

Suddenly Nick noticed one of the Bacterials turning around and looking directly at Fox:

-Look out!-he yelled

But the mutant managed to violently shoot its gigantic tongue. It caught Alistair by the waist and started to pull him towards the mutant. But then Fox did something unexpected. He swung one of his blades and managed to make an incision in the Bacterial's tongue. Blood started to gush from it, but Fox just shoved his two fingers inside the cut. A sudden surge of energy went through the tongue directly towards its master. The Bacterial started to convulse and finally it exploded, leaving only the tongue which was now hanging loosely on Fox:

-Look out for what?-he asked and smirked, while pushing the tongue off his waist

But there were still 2 Bacterials left. They were shooting their tongues as well. But this time Nick drew his sword and cut the tongues that were going right at him. The Bacterials started to scream from pain and then Nick unleashed a series of shots from his handgun, putting the remaining mutants to sleep:

-Fine shooting-said Fox-but now we'll have these infected on our backs

But at that moment screeching echoed throughout the area of the flea market:

-God dammit! Virusoids! I knew it was too quiet around here!-yelled Fox

-Where are we going now?-asked Nick, stressed just like his partner

-To the truck, now!-yelled Alistair

Both the Hexman and Fox ran up to the big trunk of the truck and hid inside it. Nick closed it so that the infected don't find them:

-Are you sure we're gonna be safe here?-whispered Nick

-I don't know. I just couldn't think of a different place to hide. It was an instinct-replied Fox angrily

-Okay, okay. Let me just give us some light-said Nick and lit his hand with Igni

As Van Thorne and Alistair were sitting in that trunk, they suddenly smelled a sour stench coming from outside:

-What's that?-asked Nick while sniffing

-Acid. The Virusoids must have arrived. They're looking for us...wait! I smell something else

-Don't look at me, I didn't just fart-said Nick

-No, but that smell is closer to us

Nick sniffed harder himself and realized the terrible fact:

-It's gasoline!

-Oh shit! Come on, blast us outta here! If the Virusoids drop even a little bit of acid on this leak we're all gonna blow up!

-Okay okay!-said Van Thorne and switched Igni in his hand into Aard, the kinetic shockwave. He stretched his hand forward. The kinetic force left his hand and blasted out the trunk's doors, killing some infected in the process. Nick and Fox dashed out of the truck, away from the horde of the infected. The three Virusoids were standing on the top of the truck. Nick looked at them. They were even more hideous. Skinny, almost bony, in shriveled clothes they almost looked like regular infected but their skin was rough and slightly yellowed. The most disturbing thing about them, though, was the fact that their jaw was boneless, yet much longer. Thus they had their jaws loosely swinging, drooling acid from their grotesque mouths. It was at that moment Nick noticed the gas leak and got an idea:

-Hey Fox! What do you say we serve these mutants a little barbecue?

-What?

Nick clenched his fist, charging up the energy of Igni. Once he stretched his hand out, a slightly longer stream of flames left his hand and touched the liquid that was on the ground. The gasoline immediately caught on fire and once Nick noticed that he screamed:

-Take cover!

At that moment the truck blew up into smithereens, destroying the 3 Virusoids and engulfing the infected in flames. They burned quickly, turning into ashes almost as quick as... (No, I refuse to make that fucking joke).

As Nick and Fox were getting up from the ground after the impact slightly hit them, Alistair was coughing while Van Thorne was uncontrollably laughing:

-Was that...really necessary?-asked Fox

-I don't know. I just couldn't think of a better thing to do. It was, as you said, an instinct

Once Fox heard that he started to laugh as well. They were both getting loud but finally they calmed down:

-Let's go back to the camp, Nick. I think Yatsuhashi might soon start getting worried. We haven't found any survivors

Nick and Fox returned to the camp. Daichi was awaiting them, but he had his sword drawn for some reason:

-Hey, Yats. What's for dinner?-asked Nick

-Shhhh...You hear that?-asked Yatsuhashi

All 3 guys listened closely. Indeed they could hear a strange sound. Some kind of gargling not far away from them:

-I hear it. A Funguy, coming right...towards us!-said Fox loudly

Everyone turned around just in time to notice the mentioned mutant running towards them. To Nick, it was even more hideous. "These things just keep getting uglier" he thought.

The Funguy's skin was in a burned color, had numerous tumors across its body and was incredibly fat. But it didn't seem like a normal fat person, but more like a person severely sick to their digestive system. It was drooling from its mouth as well, but it was yellow, so Nick immediately thought it's some sort of bile. The sight of the Funguy grossed him out so much, he immediately drew his pistol and fired at the mutant. It exploded, leaving just a piece of its gigantic stomach with legs:

-Well that was quick-said Fox

-I think I just threw up and swallowed-said Nick, while the barrel of his gun was still letting out a stream of smoke

Suddenly all 3 guys heard a cacophony of screams coming from the left. Through all these screeches, grunts and gargles Nick could hear screams that belonged to humans as well. After a while he saw as Coco and Velvet rush at incredible speed towards the camp with a lot of mutants on their back. Some of them were drooling blood from their two heads and were dark blue. Those Nick recognized as Parasoids. Others were completely pale and dwarfish but their heads seemed just like one big brain-shaped tumor. Those Nick recognized as Prionheads. Last ones were entirely purple, with tentacles coming out of every hole on their faces. Those Nick assumed to be Nanofucks.

Once Coco and Velvet reached the camp, breathing heavily they managed to say something:

-Thank goodness you're here. Velvet, did you make that picture?-asked Coco

-Yes-replied the Faunus girl

-Alright then. Everyone, battle formation. Nick, stand next to me and draw them pistols!-commanded Coco

Nick, Coco and Velvet stood in line, while Fox and Yatsuhashi stood slightly more in the back. Adel swung her purse and suddenly it transformed into an oversized minigun, while Velvet opened her bag and a holographic huge rifle appeared in her hands. Fox drew his blades and Yatsuhashi did the same with his sword. Nick drew his handguns:

-Fire!-yelled Coco

A storm of bullets left all the guns, ruthlessly shattering all the infected in sight. Nick was shooting Nanofucks in the heads, Velvet was killing off Prionheads and Coco was mowing down Parasoids in a murderous rampage from her gun. Fox and Yats were dealing with regular infected who were sometimes trying to flank the shooting team. Nick was having a lot of fun.

After a while a horde of zombies was lying dead at the team's feet. Everyone was breathing heavily, exhausted after the fight:

-Is everyone alright?-asked Coco

-Yep-replied Nick

-Good. What do you say we call it a day at our search and just go to the camp for the rest of the evening?

-I think it's a great idea!-said Yatsuhashi

-By the way-said Coco-what's for dinner?

-I'm afraid we'll have to eat candy this evening-said Yats-the fire just won't start

-Nick?-said Fox and gave his partner a suggestive look

-Got it-replied the Hexman

Van Thorne walked up to the unlit campfire and snapped his fingers. Coco and Velvet were peeking from behind his shoulders and looked in awe as the Hexman's hand was catching on fire and how he throws a little bit of the flame at the campfire, immediately lighting up the wood Yatsuhashi prepared:

-Done. We can sit around now-said Nick

And so everyone did. The sun was beginning to set and so everyone gathered by the now slightly dancing flames. Yatsuhashi later brought 5 sticks, which everyone used to roast marshmallows on the campfire. To Nick it kind of felt weird at first since they were in the middle of a city district but he got used to it and instead focused on preparing his dinner. At some point Fox sat down next to him:

-Hey uhhhhh...I wanted to thank you-he said

-For what?-asked Nick

-For joining our cause. It may not seem like it, but we're starting to lose our grip on this area. The amount of sick doesn't decrease with each day and it seems like we're the ones that will soon need to be rescued instead of them. But today, when we blew up that truck and destroyed all these infected...I felt powerful again

-And I personally never thought a monster could gross me out as much as those infected did-laughed Nick

-Really?

-Yes. You see, Fox, I've seen a lot of brutality in my life. Not just Grimm attacking people but the other way around as well. I've seen families being torn apart by each other, friends hiding daggers for each other under their sleeves and lovebirds losing their wings immediately after one issue arisen. You know what's the best way to cope with such things? Music. But not the mainstream stuff you hear on the radio or the music channels. I'm talking about very brutal music

-You mean heavy metal?-interrupted Fox

-Uhhhhh...yeah. How did you...

Fox unzipped his vest a little, revealing underneath it a tattoo with a logo Nick recognized too well:

-Is that...Exodus?-he asked amazed

-Yep. Did it myself by the mirror. Pretty cool, huh?-said Fox, smirking

-Yeah but...I never suspected you'd be listening to metal as well-said Nick, now widely smiling

-There's a lot of things you don't know about me yet, Nick

Fox zipped back his vest, because he noticed Coco coming in their direction:

-Guys, is the fire better on this side?-she asked, swinging her stick with the marshmallow a bit

-No...-said Nick

-Yes!-Fox almost yelled-actually mine's ready so I'll go and pull it off the stick

Alistair quickly got up and walked away. Nick gave him an angry look, as if he wanted to say "I'm gonna murder you one day". Fox just grinned widely.

Coco sat next to Nick and stretched her stick forward towards the fire. Van Thorne noticed she's...awkwardly close to him. Through the flames he could see Velvet, who was giving him a sorry look:

-I heard an explosion earlier-said Adel after a while-are you and Fox okay?

-Yes, we're fine-said Nick. He didn't want to look Coco in the eyes at all costs

-Well...what did you encounter?

-Bacterials, Virusoids and one Funguy when we reached the camp

-Sounds like you had an easy job. Velvet and I walked into a basement of one flat and all we found were Parasoids, Prionheads and Nanofucks. But Velvet found an old rusty gun in one of the basement's rooms so naturally she took a photo of it and now she's gonna show off with a holographic copy of it for the next month

-Well...that makes it a tie then. None of us found survivors

-But even though we didn't, we made the streets a little safer by killing these infected-Coco then turned directly to Van Thorne-either way, you and Fox did a great job today

At that moment Nick felt as Coco pats him on the back, but it was too close to his butt. He stiffened for a second:

-Yeah, ummmm...thanks, Coco. You and Velvet probably did a great job as well today-Nick then realized his marshmallow is ready to get off the stick and wanted to get up and walk away to pull it off, but Coco grabbed him by the arm after he took the stick out of the fire

-Listen-she said-I'm gonna be real with you here. I want you to stay with us not just because you're a better fighter than I thought but because...because...

Nick was still awkwardly looking at Coco, who was still holding him by his arm. He noticed a small tear forming in her eye. She then looked into his eyes. Now they were both looking at each other:

-I've been alone for too long. Sure, I have the rest of my team with me, but we've known each other since we were proclaimed as team CFVY in Beacon. But you know, being here is different than Beacon. I can't leave this district as long as the quarantine lockdown is active. I feel like I'm in a cage, denied from seeing those I'd like to see. I want you to understand that...

-Enough, Coco. You're trying to make me feel bad. But you know what? Things you've been trying to do to me qualify as sexual harassment and I refuse to experience it again-Nick said and released his arm from Adel's grip. He then got up with his stick and walked away from the camp.

Away from the entire team CFVY, Nick was trying to pull the marshmallow off his stick. It was still hot, which was making it hard for Van Thorne to even move it. Suddenly he heard someone following him. He turned around and noticed Fox standing a bit close to him:

-Well aren't you a lone wolf type-said Alistair

-Why did you walk away? You knew what Coco would try to do and yet you left me there with her. Why?

-Before you came, I was in the same situation as you. I can't remember a day when Coco wasn't, as you said, "sexually harassing" me. Every day I was getting slapped in my bottom, talked to dirty, and sometimes kicked in the crotch as well. But you know what? That was all Coco did. I'll give you an advice. Don't resist her. It only turns her on more. You've already done that three times. You'll end up worse than me. But it's not for me to be concerned about. You saved me, Van Thorne. Now you have Coco on your back. Or should I say...

-Shut the fuck up, Fox!-yelled Nick and threw his stick at Alistair. He just dodged it by moving his head to the left. After that Van Thorne just quickly ate his marshmallow

-You're angry now, I understand. But to be honest, for no reason

After that Fox walked away. Nick wanted to smoke badly. But then everyone in the camp heard a voice from nearby:

-Help! Somebody! Please!

-Did you hear that?-asked Fox

-Someone's in trouble-said Yatsuhashi

-Well let's go then. We just might not come back with empty hands after all-said Coco

Team CFVY and Nick grabbed their gear, quickly eating their marshmallows before running towards where the voice could be heard:

-Anybody! Please! I'm trapped here!-the voice could be heard yet again

The team ran to the back of a house from where the cry for help could be heard. Once there, they saw him.

It was an old man stuck under a flipped over car. He was desperately trying to push it off his legs, but without any results. And even though he suffered so much, Nick suddenly got suspicious. "Why didn't we hear that car flipping over? Why didn't Coco and Velvet encounter this guy while they were on their search?" he thought.

But even though Nick was doubtful, Fox and Yatsuhashi immediately ran up to the old man and lifted the car up a bit. After that Coco ran up to him and helped him get up from under that car:

-Thank you! Oh thank you!-he said

-Are you okay, sir? Can you walk?-asked Adel

-Yes, I can-he replied and started to slowly walk with help from team CFVY's leader-thank you, Coco

That ultimately raised suspicion in Nick. He drew his gun and pointed it at the old man:

-Step away from her! Do it now or I'll shoot!

-Nick, what are you doing?!-yelled Velvet, trying to grab the Hexman by the hand in which he held the gun

-This guy's not a survivor. He wasn't here when you were searching for survivors, none of us heard the car dropping on his legs and I don't remember any of us telling him our names, so why did he call Coco by her name?

The survivor gave Nick, Velvet, Fox and Yatsuhashi a very menacing look. Everyone then could see as his eyes turn from blue to dark green. Not just his pupils, but even the whites were getting dark green. Once a sudden red blink came from his eyes, he smiled deviously:

-Very impressive, Hexman-he said with a completely different voice. It was harsh and menacing

Nick wanted to shoot but the old man suddenly made a quick move and in the next minute he held Coco by her neck and wrists with his filthy hands:

-You got very lucky-he said-but she didn't

-Let. Coco. Go. Now!-yelled Nicholas, already pissed off

-Oh I will-he said and got his face awfully close to Coco's ear-after I do what I'm supposed to!

Coco was frightened. That old man suddenly felt menacing and not so desperate about being rescued anymore. "What have we done? Who did we help? Is this a new mutation of the infected?" she kept thinking:

-You'll make a fine vessel for the eggs to hatch-said the old man to Coco's ear. She suddenly came to a terrifying realization. The old man's mouth was opened and now a slimy black liquid was coming from it and it was slowly dripping on her shoulder. Not just that but she also noticed how from this black liquid various crawling insects emerge. She was now terrified to the point she had problems with breathing.

But then suddenly the thing that caught her got knocked back with its head blown into smithereens. Nick was standing closely and aiming his gun. Smoke was still coming from its barrel. Coco quickly shook the liquid, which managed to stain her shirt, off. Upon seeing Nick, she quickly ran up to him and hid behind him:

-What the FUCK is that thing?!-yelled Yatsuhashi, seeing as the old man starts to get up from the ground with his head slowly getting back in shape

-Well that's not a nice thing to say, Mr. Daichi-said the thing that caught Coco

-It's a Plague Angel-said Nick, barely believing in what he sees happening before him

Once the old man's head was restored, he suddenly started to transform. He started to tear skin off his body, savagely grunting while doing that. Underneath it his flesh was completely green. At some point when he was done the clothes on him changed into a black uniform and when he tore the skin off his head everyone could see a terrifying green face of a demon with red eyes and disturbingly wide mouth. After that his hair was turning black, from his forehead two horns emerged and a pair of rotten, feathered wings emerged from his back. This was the Plague Angel:

-What the HELL are you?!-yelled Fox this time

-Silithas-the demon introduced himself-I'm a demon of the Plague Angels' battalion. At your service, humans

-I'm gonna enjoy taking you down, demon scum-said Nick while pointing his gun at Silithas' head

-What was that famous saying you humans had? "No man hurts the messenger"?-asked the Plague Angel, menacingly smiling

-What do you want?!-yelled Nick

-I was just checking out the famous Numb Plague, which I didn't cause. Not bad for a beginner. But, since you are here as well, Hexman...I might deliver the message I had for you as well

-Nick, what is he talking about?-asked Velvet

-Lord Dante is most displeased with your actions. He just wants to inform you, that your precious Pyrrha is never going to be safe and not even you can stop her from being brought back to Inferno

-We'd have to see about that, Silithas-said Nick

-Oh I won't. You will. I only deliver the message. The Lord sent someone far worse after your puny little girl. Beware, Hexman. By not sealing the rift you didn't let just good souls escape

-Tell Dante he can shove you all up his shadowy butthole!-yelled Nick

Silithas, hearing that, started to laugh maniacally. His terrifying giggle made everyone uncomfortable, Coco started to shiver. He then started to wave his wings until he was so high in the air he dashed away from the team until he disappeared in the horizon. Nick then saw remnants of the demon's disguise turning into ashes on the ground. He then felt someone tugging on his coat. It was Coco:

-Let's go back. I think we've had enough excitement for today-said the Hexman

Everyone returned to the campfire and sat around it. All except for Coco. She walked away from everyone and sat on the cold pavement, staring into nothingness. Meanwhile Velvet decided to break the silence:

-Nick, what did that demon want from you?-she asked

-It's a complicated case...wait! I gotta make a call!-said Nick and suddenly got up. He walked away from the campfire and took out his scroll. He dialed Pyrrha's number and put the scroll to his ear:

-Yes, Nick?-said the girl's voice after she picked up

-Oh thank goodness. It's nothing, my love. Really. I was just checking up on you-he said, stuttering a bit

-Nick, you're not in Haven again. Where are you? We've all been worried...Nick? Nick?

Van Thorne hung up the call and hid the scroll back in his pocket. He suddenly heard steps behind him. He turned around. It was Velvet:

-Who was that? Was it Pyrrha?-she asked

-Yes. Yes it was her-Nick replied

-You and Nikos are...together?

-It's a bit...different than that

-What do you mean?

-Some time ago I learned that Pyrrha Nikos died during a huge battle in Beacon academy. I did a forbidden ritual and transported myself into Dante's kingdom. I saved Pyrrha from eternal torment, but before I did that, I forgot to seal the rift I made so that other souls don't escape. Now I know that besides Pyrrha 4 other souls escaped Inferno. I met up with two of these people, but the other two are still in grave danger. And that's just the people I know about from one of the rescued. Only the demons know how many souls they lost. Silithas might know more than he looks like he knows

-Yeah, but...why did you call her "love"?-asked Velvet

-Ever since I bumped into my long lost aunt in Vale I've been living a weirder life than ever before. I've met numerous girls on my journey before that, but nothing significant was happening. Now almost everyone I meet is friendly to me. And girls, they...sometimes go even beyond that. Pyrrha and two other girls did so. So...officially I'm in a relationship with 3 girls at once. They know about each other and they accept it

-You're more fascinating than I thought you were-said Velvet after a short silence

-Look, just...pretend you never found this out about me, okay?-said Nick and walked away from Velvet

The Faunus girl stood there for a little longer and returned to the campfire. Yatsuhashi and Fox were roasting more marshmallows on their sticks and Scarlatina was just staring at Nick as he walks up to the traumatized Coco:

-How are you feeling?-he said as he was sitting down next to team CFVY's leader

-It was moving...that black stuff-she said, stuttering

-It's fine. The demon is gone. You're safe now

-I bet you're happy, seeing me so weakened from fright

-Of course not! Why would you even think that?-Nick felt offended...and then suddenly realized why Coco says that and felt embarrassed. He then took off his coat and covered Coco with it

-I'm sorry, Nick. For all I've done to upset you. I wasn't trying to. I just wanted to keep you close to me. I didn't want to be alone

-And you never will be-said Nick and put his arms around Coco's shoulders. She moved closer to Van Thorne and wrapped her arms around him as well

-Nick? Does that qualify as sexual harassment as well?-she asked and let out a quiet giggle

-Coco, forget I ever accused you of anything of that sort-said Nick and smiled

When Coco heard that, her head started to go slowly down until she put it on Nick's lap. She got comfortable and shortly after that Nick felt her sleepy breath on his knees. Coco was asleep.

Nick felt like he's holding a baby in his hands. Seeing Coco sleep was a cute sight for him. After a while Velvet walked up to him:

-Nick, aren't you going to sleep?-she asked

-No, I'm gonna take the watch for tonight-he said, not looking at the Faunus girl

Scarlatina was standing there for a short time, watching as her team's leader uses Nick's lap as her pillow...and she puffed her cheeks from jealousy. "I'm not letting her have him all to herself" she thought and walked up closer to Nick and sat next to him:

-I'll be watching with you as well. You know, in case you decide you actually want to take a short nap-she said

-Suit yourself-said Nick

"Yes, it's all working perfectly" thought the Faunus girl. Of course she wasn't planning to take the night watch with Nick. Mainly because about 2 hours later Van Thorne suddenly felt something on his shoulder. He slowly turned his head and noticed that Velvet's head is clinging onto him. The Faunus girl was quietly snoring. "God, this is all too cute. I might actually get diabetes" thought Nick. Now only Fox and Yatsuhashi remained by the campfire.

Nick woke up first. It was around 6 a.m. His shoulder and lap hurt like hell, but he was happy. One move of his hand caused Velvet to immediately wake up:

-Was I drooling? Because that sometimes happens when I sleep-said the Faunus girl

-No, it was all okay. No need to worry about that. Just help me wake up Coco

Adel woke up shortly after Velvet and she immediately put on her sunglasses. She then walked back to the campfire and woke up Fox and Yatsuhashi with a kick:

-Ouch!-both of them yelled

-Just get up you two. We need to finish the trip today-said Coco

And so, once Yatsuhashi put out the campfire and packed all the things he could pack into the backpack, everyone left the market and went forth with their route. From the market they were supposed to go towards the shrine. Yatsuhashi was in the front. Nick soon joined him there:

-Hey, Yats. Where's that flat we were supposed to check?-he asked

-On the other side of the road, right where the shrine is standing

-Oh okay. So...are we getting close?

-Yeah, the shrine is right over there. I think we might soon hear that music again. Stay vigilant, everyone!

As they were all walking closer and closer towards the shrine, they suddenly heard it. The music did come from the flat a couple of meters away from the shrine. It did sound very menacing. Nick recognized the genre-it indeed was dark ambient. But what caught his eye more was coming from the shrine itself. Yatsuhashi noticed that as well:

-Everyone, look! Survivors at the shrine!-he yelled

-No, don't!-yelled Nick, seeing how the "survivors" are dressed

Black uniforms, gasmasks with red eyes, rifles on their backs, a sign of the inverted cross on their uniform's sleeve and they were carrying some kind of metal barrel with them. To Nick it was already too obvious.

The soldiers of Lahilla then noticed the 7 feet tall Yatsuhashi calling them and immediately opened fire from their rifles. Nick, who was the only one who knew about the danger, immediately started rushing towards them, dodging the red bullets. Once he was close enough, he drew his sword and brutally slashed both soldiers, cutting them in half. They fell on the ground, dead, and Nick hid his sword. Team CFVY immediately ran up to him:

-What the fuck was that?!-asked Fox

-Not what, but who-said Coco

-Lahilla-said Nick quickly

-Those motherfuckers who held hostage an entire district of Mistral?-asked Fox

-Yes, that's them-said Nick

-What would they be doing in here?-asked Velvet

-Remember what Silithas said? He didn't create the Numb Plague-said Nicholas and kicked the barrel two soldiers were carrying. It had a sign on it that said "Biohazard"

-Those...god damn it...mother fucking...pieces...of fucking shit-Coco was cursing angrily

"You were right all along, William" thought Nick.

-They were coming from the shrine or the flat?-asked Fox

-From the shrine-said Yatsuhashi

-Alright, I suggest we split up-said Velvet

-Good idea, Velvet. You'll go with Nick to the flat. Yats and Fox, check the shrine. I'll stay here and look out for potential heads of the fucking Lahilla to shoot off

-Are you gonna be okay?-Coco asked Nick and gently caressed her arm

-I'll be fine-she said

Velvet immediately got jealous and grabbed Nick by the hand:

-Let's go-she said

And so the team split up again. Nick and Velvet went inside the flat, from where the music could be heard. Once they reached the stairway, they noticed the music is coming louder from the cellar. Velvet shook her ears in fear:

-Nick?-she said

-Hm?

-I'm scared

-It's okay. I'm here with you-after these words Nick gently put his hand on Velvet's. "Yes. It's still going perfectly" she thought and immediately smiled

-I know-said the Faunus girl and cowered behind the Hexman. They started to slowly go down the stairs. Nick was holding a sword in one hand and a pistol in another one. Velvet opened her bag and the holographic rifle appeared in her hands. Once they left the stairs behind, they looked around them.

They landed in a narrow, humid corridor, with a lot of doors on the sides of this cellar and barely any lights inside. Each of the doors were closed and had a lock on them except for one in the distance, which was wide opened. "Maybe that's where the soldiers were carrying that barrel?" thought Nick:

-Hey look! There's one room opened!-said Velvet

-Yes, let's check this one. Got any flashlights just in case?-asked Nick

-Yep, I got one-said Velvet and lit the flashlight she had on her holographic rifle, lighting a path for Nick

-Okay then, let's go

Nick and Velvet moved slowly towards the opened door. Halfway there Van Thorne noticed small black shapes rushing on the floor right in front of him towards a hole in the wall:

-Eeeeeep!-squeaked Velvet and almost dropped her gun on the ground

-Don't panic, it's just rats-laughed Nick

-Just rats?! Very funny!-cried Velvet

Still a little bit giggling Nick and Velvet finally reached the room at the end of the corridor. The Faunus girl lit the path around them and noticed that this room seems slightly bigger than an average basement room. But when she turned her flashlight to the right, she almost went speechless:

-Nick...look-she said

Van Thorne looked at where Velvet was pointing with her flashlight and almost went speechless himself. A pile of metal barrels with a biohazard sign on them was stretched out for a couple of feet before them:

-Bloody hell-said Nick-with this amount of pathogens you could poison an entire kingdom...or more

-So we have our culprit-said Velvet-it was all Lahilla. Not natural causes, not even Silithas. It was all the Masked Fox's fault

-Come on. Let's see if they maybe left some antidote laying around. We'll bring it to William if we find it

Nick and Velvet started to search the room, searching for any evidence linking the plague to Lahilla. Suddenly Nick discovered a desk hidden at the corner of the room. On the desk he found some kind of blueprints:

-Velvet, I got something-he said

The Faunus girl ran up to him and peeked from behind his shoulder on the blueprints:

-It's the map of Mistral's sewerage system-she said

-And look over there-said Nick and pointed slightly above the desk on the wall. Velvet looked there and her eyes almost popped out.

-It's...us-she said

Lahilla had photos of everyone on that wall. Team CFVY's, SSSN's, ABRN's, Junior's, Roman's, Tromberg's, Neo's, Winter's, even Adam's, William's and Nick's. Velvet was terrified. It came to her realization that Lahilla was spying on everyone across the whole city of Mistral and no one detected them. Not even Nick. She almost fainted, but Nick caught her on time:

-Whoa, slow down there!-he said

-My hero-she said, but all Nick did was putting her back on her feet

-I found something else with these blueprints-said the Hexman-it's a note. I hope it's not coded

Nick opened the note and rolled his eyes on the paper. He read out loud what was written on it:

" _Grandmaster,_

 _We've deployed the rest of the toxin in Northern Hills. After examining the first specimen, we have our personal message to your head scientist. None of what's happening right now is a failure. We can only claim this as our success. Just as you thought, the mutation is irreversible and only those that didn't yet have the pathogen mutated can be cured with the purple medicine you have. We look forward to spreading the plague across Mistral, especially in the tent of that meddling Blue Lotus and in this academy of spoiled brats, Haven. Keep us posted on your work on Sanus. We shall await your next orders with patience._

 _Sincerely,_

 _~Cluster 212"_

-Scumbags-said Velvet

-They were planning to bomb the entire Mistral with the plague?!-even Nick couldn't believe what he's reading at first

-Come on, we better inform the others

This time, Nick and Velvet were rushing out of the basement and out of the flat. The rest already awaited them at the same spot where they split up:

-There you are. Did you find something?-asked Coco. She clearly was happy

-Yeah. Blueprints of Mistral's sewerage system and a note. Lahilla was going to biologically bomb the entire Mistral, including the Blue Lotus' camp and Haven

-And we have good news-said Fox-William just called us and said he has a cure for the plague. Right now he's installing it in the filters of his tiltrotor. He says we'll soon be ready to spread it

Suddenly the ground started to shake a little bit. Everyone looked at each other, immediately paralyzed from fear:

-What the shit is that?-asked Nick

-A stampede?-said Fox

Suddenly a loud roar echoed across the area:

-Bio Soldiers!-yelled Coco, scared

Everyone looked around. The mentioned mutants were coming at them from both sides in gigantic stampedes. The Bio Soldiers themselves were gigantic as well, taller than Yatsuhashi. And just like Coco said, they were ripped as hell, thus being extremely wide. But somehow they managed to make a cramped formation right in front of them. Nick could see their disgusting faces-twisted, with bright red tongue forever sticking out of their mouths. Their skin was dark pink and their necks were even wider than their heads. But they all stopped right in front of team CFVYN. Once they arrived, everyone heard fast footsteps coming from the flat. A small battalion of Lahilla's soldiers ran out of the flat and surrounded them:

-Don't move an inch!-yelled every last one of them

The entire team raised their hands a little bit and they wanted to keep them up...until Nick noticed some shape standing on the top of the flat.

It was an incredibly short man in a golden tunic with a purple cape waving in the wind. His feet were covered by dark brown hiking boots on high heels, which were making him slightly taller. On his face Nick could see a sparkling white mask with holes in it just for eyes. Blood immediately boiled in him:

-Welcome, huntsmen. And you as well, Van Thorne-said the man in the mask, slightly nodding

-You...-said Nick with a bit changed voice

-How do you find my new army, Hexman? Did it live up to your expectations? I truly hope so-said Seraphimovich

-Piss off, you cockroach-said Van Thorne

-Really? A cockroach? Is that the best you can do? Well I might take that as a compliment, since the cockroaches always survive. And that is what I'm the best at-said the Masked Fox

-So...-Coco suddenly came in-you are the infamous Masked Fox? You stole my friend's name

-I never liked that nickname and I never called myself that-said Thomas while pushing more to the back his cape-and you are?

-Coco Adel-replied the girl-leader of team CFVY and the Blue Lotus' volunteer. You are responsible for turning all these people into mindless creatures. And for that, Mr. Not-Fox I will have your ass!

-Coco, what are you doing?-asked Nick

-Trust me-she said and winked to him

-Oh?-laughed Seraphimovich-and how, lady Coco, you think that's gonna happen?

Coco then did something unexpected. She grabbed the edge of her shirt and pulled it high up, revealing her surprisingly big pair of breasts:

-With these!-she said, definitely confident about herself

Nick opened his mouth wide but it wasn't the weirdest thing. The soldiers of Lahilla suddenly pointed down their guns themselves:

-Woooooow-they all muttered

-Now, Nick!-yelled Coco

Van Thorne didn't know what exactly to do but he just drew his sword and stabbed one of the soldiers of Lahilla in the chest. He immediately landed on the ground. Coco covered her chest back with her shirt and released her minigun. Everyone else grabbed their weapons and jumped at the Lahillan soldiers. The Bio Soldiers then roared and jumped to the fun themselves. Coco was keeping them back with her minigun, but it was soon getting overheated. In the meantime, Van Thorne jumped off one of the Bio Soldier's heads right onto the ledge of the top of the building Seraphimovich was on, he grabbed himself up on it and now stood face to face with one of his biggest enemies:

-Hey, does anyone still remember the cavalry?!-a loud voice could suddenly be heard in the short distance

Nick turned back and noticed an entire Atlesian fleet flying towards the northern district. It was led by a familiar to Nick tiltrotor:

-William!-yelled Nick

-It seems like some bugs went feral! Filters, Stephen!-yelled William and pressed the accelerator on the tiltrotor

Stephen flew like a dragonfly across the northern district of Mistral, raining purple substance across the streets:

-What?! Impossible!-yelled Seraphimovich

-Nooooooooooooo!-screamed the Bio Soldiers, as the purple liquid was turning them back into humans

The Atlesian fleet then landed and led a direct assault on Lahilla's soldiers. Nick was still roaring with joy along with team CFVY, who soon joined him on the roof. And once Stephen landed on the rooftop, not only William jumped out of it, but the entire Haven as well. Nick was yet again cheerfully greeted by Yang and everyone reunited with team CFVY, who had tears in their eyes seeing old friends after so long:

-Isn't that just the puke level cute?-suddenly the voice of Seraphimovich broke the joy-A bunch of fleas reunited on the carcass of the same mongrel. I love it!

-You have nowhere to go, Lahillan scum!-said Nick

-We have a score to settle, asswipe-said William

-Oh well would you look at that?! William "The crybag" Vengh, in his own flesh, bones and metals!-said Seraphimovich with joy

-Ain't that a family reunion, motherfucker?-said William

-You might have just one human eye, but you remember how we first met, don't you?-said Seraphimovich and laughed

-All too well, shithead-said William

-"Oooooooh, I'm not gay. I'm gonna punch your eyes out!"-Seraphimovich was trying to imitate William's voice-you were just a little bitch!

-No, I was just a loving fiancée-replied William-and I told you...to leave...that bag...alone!

William suddenly started glowing blue. Lightning bolts were surrounding him. After a short time he snapped his neck, but his head came back in place:

-What is he doing?!-yelled Ren

-Stand back, everyone-said Nick-he's using his semblance

William's cybernetic eye turned red and a surge of energy left his body. Once all the smoke left him, he had a gigantic hole in his back. Stanley the exoskeleton was no longer an exoskeleton, but 8 long metal, spider-like limbs, which lifted William in the air. Once he was in the air, he drew his staff and the gun from pockets in his legs:

-You won't make it out alive-he said in a very menacing, slightly robotic, voice

-Impressive. But I have toys of my own!-yelled Seraphimovich and pressed something on his wrist. He got surrounded by a bright light and when it left, he was in a mechanized suit at the height of William and his now unleashed hidden limbs. A gigantic cannon appeared in his suit's right arm and a sword appeared in the other one:

-I will feast on your flesh-said Vengh

-We shall see-Seraphimovich said and jumped with his suit on William

Thus a big fight began. Vengh yet again was experiencing flashbacks from all across his life. All the time in Gwynbleidd, Domgard, Merlot's island, Atlas and now Mistral flashed before him. But he didn't care much about that. All he wanted to do was to destroy Seraphimovich. He was constantly landing his spider limbs on the mechanized suit of the leader of Lahilla. Thomas was just laughing and taunting him. At some point they clashed their melee weapons. William's whip/taser was overpowering Seraphimovich's sword and soon William managed to jump on the suit's head and start hitting the glass with his fist which shielded Seraphimovich. But the midget just laughed and blew him off his head with the cannon. William quickly got back on his feet and limbs and unleashed hell from his rifle. The leader of Lahilla switched his cannon into a machine gun and was deflecting the bullets. At some point Nick stepped in and used Yrden around the suit. The purple symbols flashed and prevented the suit from moving. William attacked again. His fists knew no mercy. The glass was about to shatter. Seraphimovich was desperately pressing all the controls until he accidentally pressed a self-destruct button. At that moment William shattered the glass. Seraphimovich was at his mercy:

-I SEE YOU!-yelled the cyborg as he was grabbing the Masked Fox by his neck

-William look out!-yelled Nick

William's eye then turned blue again and just in the nick of time he managed to jump away from the exploding suit. The spider limbs were slowly turning back into the exoskeleton. But what about Seraphimovich:

-Let...me...go...-he was gargling as William was still holding him by the neck

-We'll take it from here, Vengh-said Winter, who suddenly appeared on the rooftop

The leader of Lahilla was cuffed:

-You think this is the end, huh Hexman?-said Seraphimovich-you have no idea, how wrong you are. He's coming for you. He knows you survived. He is hunting. And he knows where you are. Ahahahahahahahahahaha!

-Take him away-said Winter, clearly disgusted and walked away with the soldiers

Nick was standing speechless. William passed out on the floor from overheating his circuits. But everyone was happy. Everyone was roaring with joy, celebrating the liberation of the entire city of Mistral.

But Nick wasn't happy. He just stood there and stared into nothingness. He looked upon his Hexman medallion...and then he heard a voice next to him:

-Hey, what's wrong?-asked Pyrrha

-He's alive-said Nick-I should have known

-What are you saying? We caught the leader of Lahilla, you no longer have to be afraid of everything!

-No, Pyrrha. Seraphimovich was just a puppet. There is a much bigger threat searching for me

-Who or what is searching for you?-asked Pyrrha, slowly getting worried

-That traitor. Salem's brother. Schwartz Von Greim-said Nick and walked away from everyone, to the nearest Atlesian ship. Pyrrha just stood there, awfully concerned

That evening echoed throughout the entire Mistral from Haven. The celebration of reclaiming the city was louder than hell itself. Nick was being lifted on his hands, while William had to go to hospital to recharge his circuits and batteries. Merlot came with him to make sure everything goes smoothly.

The leader of Blue Lotus personally thanked William and Nick for their help in defeating the Numb Plague and rewarded them with 19 thousand Liens for each one.

And Nick? He was enjoying the punch on the banquet with his red-haired love, smartly dressed, not even suspecting, what awaits him:

-Everybody!-suddenly a voice said through the microphone in the canteen. It was Tromberg-as I'm sure you're all aware, we celebrate a great victory this evening. But the star of this evening has yet to receive his gratitude from Haven, Mistral and the entire Remnant! Everyone, please welcome the hero of our continent, Nicholas Van Thorne!

-Go on-said Pyrrha-I'll just chill out at the balcony

Nick slowly walked up to the platform on which Tromberg was standing. Once he reached her, she reached her hands out to him:

-Nicholas, the entire kingdom is in your debt! We would like you to have this-she said and took something from her new assistant who stood next to her. Nick's eyes went wide

-Is that...

-Yes, Nick. It's the Mistrali National Medal of Courage. You truly deserve it-said Tromberg and put it over Nick's head-now, would you like to make a speech?

Absolutely speechless Nick walked up to the microphone and looked in front of him. Everyone was slowly getting silent, awaiting their hero to speak. With shaking hands, Van Thorne took the microphone in his hands:

-Well...-he said with a stuttering voice

Everyone just kept looking. Suddenly Nick felt as his confidence is rising and tightened the grip on the microphone:

-If someone two years ago told me that one day I'd be standing here, in Haven, with a medal around my neck, giving a speech for saving millions of lives, I'd punch that guy. But here I am and...I honestly am at loss of words. All my life as a Hexman I had the worst image about humans in my mind as my father taught me. But now, 3 years ever since my village was destroyed by Lahillla, my life took a 180 degrees turn. I got reunited with my family, made friends I cherish more than anything, and most importantly...I learned that love exists in this world. And that it can achieve great things. We all lost someone close to us in that hall. Some of us were reunited, some weren't. But one thing is certain about all of us. We will never give in to the chains that divide. Not Lahilla, not the Grimm, not even Dante and his theater of minions. No matter how much we may hate each other, we're all friends in the end. We all stand together. And this medal doesn't just honor the courage I had. It honors all of us. It is the medal, which symbolizes what we all achieved. I would be nothing without you. And I achieved all of this thanks to you. I love you all, thank you!

The entire hall roared with joy, some people even shed a tear hearing Nick's speech. Even Van Thorne himself started to sob a little. He was in heaven. A heaven he thought doesn't exist.

Once he went off the platform, he went to the balcony to see Pyrrha. But when he reached it, the sight was terrifying.

Pyrrha wasn't alone. She was held by her arms by two bizarre creatures. They had skeletal appearance, two tentacles coming out of the corners of their mouths and burning eyes. Upon seeing Nick, they let out a screech:

-Nick, look out!-screamed Nikos

-Pyrrha!-yelled Nick and suddenly he felt dull pain in the back of his head.

Someone walked up to Nikos. It was a tall guy in a black suit, a red tie, a brown trench coat and a walking stick in his hand. Nick managed to partially regain consciousness and noticed his face. Bowler hat on his head, spiky ears, white skin, red eyes, a crooked nose and a fancy moustache with a light beard. He was smiling deviously:

-Not so tough now, are you, Van Thorne?-he said

-Who...are...you-said Nick, stuttering while getting back on his feet

-Oh we met once already, Van Thorne. But that was in different circumstances-he said and snapped his fingers. Nick and Pyrrha watched in shock as now instead of this man stood a shape made of fire. Pyrrha opened her mouth wide

-Impossible-said Nikos

-Impossible is to run away from me-said Malacoda once he returned to his disguise. He quickly ran up to Pyrrha and pulled her by the cheeks-you seem to be even wearing a red dress. Good. It's just as the Lord wanted

-You're not taking her anywhere, Malacoda!-said Nick, now fully regenerated

-Oh? And who's going to stop me? You?-laughed the fire demon

-As a matter of fact, yes. It's gonna be me-said Nick and snapped his fingers quickly

-No!-yelled Malacoda

Nick stretched his hand forward and the force field of Aard hit Malacoda. But the fiery demon vanished just in the nick of time to reappear on his thunder steed. Aard instead blew off the balcony one of the Bedlam soldiers. Pyrrha quickly dealt with the other one and now only Malacoda remained:

-You'll regret this, Hexman! And you as well, Red Damsel! I'll see you in hell!-yelled the hell general and dashed forward on his steed, vanishing in the air

Pyrrha had a panic attack. She had trouble breathing. Her PTSD reappeared once she saw the demon that tortured her. She was so terrified, she sat down on the ground. Nick quickly ran up to her and sat next to her:

-Are you alright? Did he do anything to you?

-No. He was waiting patiently for you-she stuttered

-It's all okay now. He's gone, he's not going to do anything to you

-Nick, I will not go back to Dante's fortress. I can't. I wouldn't survive it again-she cried

-You won't. As long as I live this will not happen. I love you, remember. You mean everything to me. Look me in the eyes. Breathe. I will protect you. Always. Forever.

Pyrrha laid her hand in Nick's chest and started to cry loudly. It turned out everyone inside the canteen heard the shockwave of Aard and soon a lot of people witnessed as Nicholas Van Thorne holds in his arms a crying, terrified red-haired girl. Nicholas erased all his previous doubts. He now knew what had to be done. "It's time to rebuild the Brotherhood" he thought, as the eyes of everyone around him were piercing him.


	14. Way back home

Malacoda's visit ruined the rest of the celebration.

Nick was sitting with Pyrrha for a long time on that balcony, tightly hugging her and letting her cry her eyes out. At some point the crowd that gathered around realized it seems a bit awkward and they left the balcony. Only one person remained. And, shockingly, it was Jaune.

He walked up closer to the two on the floor and passed Nick a glass of water he had in his hands:

-She'll probably need it more than I do-he said

Pyrrha drank the water Arc brought and started to slowly calm down. Her head was still on Nick's shoulder. Jaune sat next to him:

-What happened here?-asked the blonde guy

-It's a bit too early to ask about that-said Nick, not looking at Jaune. Instead, he raised his hand a bit and caressed Pyrrha's hair. Her eyes were still swollen from crying. Arc felt bad for his behavior. He wanted to try to talk to Pyrrha and show her he's sorry, but then suddenly the red-haired girl let out a cute whimper, implying that she fell asleep

-Did she...-Jaune was about to ask

-Yes-said Nick-I'll go and lay her in bed. I don't think I'll be back

Van Thorne gently lifted Pyrrha in his arms and went with her towards the dorm of Haven. He wanted to lay her in bed and watch over her for the night in case Malacoda wanted to try his luck again.

But once he reached the dorm, he heard footsteps behind him. With something that looked like an instinct he jumped to the doors of team JNPR's room, laid Pyrrha by the door and turned around with his fists clenched.

But then he realized he had nothing to worry about:

-Damn, you really don't like people following you, do you?-asked Nora. It was her, slightly wobbling on her feet. She clearly had too much punch

-No, Nora. I don't like people sneaking up on me-replied Nick as he was lifting Pyrrha back in his hands

-Why are you saying so? I wasn't sneaking up, you just have loud feet-she said in a bit drunk tone

-Can you just open this door?-asked Nick

-Okay, okay. Geez, you're so mean when you're worried-said the ginger girl and opened the door to her room with her scroll

Nick walked up to Pyrrha's bed and laid her in it. Nora slowly followed him inside and immediately jumped on her bed. But when she noticed Nick doesn't leave the room but just watches over Pyrrha while also trying to cover her with the quilt, she immediately sat on the edge of her bed:

-Aren't you going to undress her at least?-she said

Nick gave her a very angry look and she immediately felt embarrassed:

-Forget I said anything-she said

Pyrrha let out some kind of purr through her sleep. Nick, immediately concerned, grabbed her by the hand. He didn't notice Nora slowly sneaking up behind him and peeking from behind his shoulder:

-Eh, I guess that could work as well-she said, upon seeing Nick's hand on Pyrrha's

-Nora!-Nick hissed. The ginger girl tried to jump away from him but she wobbled and fell on the floor with her butt. At first Nick was pissed off, thinking Pyrrha might have been woken up because of Nora's insolence but when he saw that the red-haired girl is sleeping like a stone, he felt a bit sorry for Nora as well, since he knew how hard it is to function drunk...and the things some people do in such state:

-Are you okay?-he asked as he was helping Nora get up

-I think I'm fine. One of my buttocks hurts a little, but it's fine-replied the ginger girl

Nick helped Nora lay slowly on the bed and when she did he covered her with her quilt. Again, he felt like a babysitter:

-Nick?-asked Nora. She didn't seem that drunk anymore-can I ask you something?

-Of course-said Van Thorne and sat on the edge of Nora's bed

-Am I ugly?-she asked. Nick's eyes got very wide

-What?! Of course not, why would you even...-Nick was in huge shock

-What do other girls have that I don't?-she asked. She sounded serious

-I...uhhhh...-Nick stuttered. "Think, dumbass. Say something true about her. Girls have that tendency to not appreciate what's good about them. Come on, boost her confidence" he thought.

-I think...it should be the other way around. What do you have that other girls don't?-said Nick

-Well...-said Nora and ostentatiously looked down on her chest hidden behind the corset of her evening dress-I wouldn't know

-Nora...you're funny and it makes you cute. What else would you need?-said Nick, now with his full smooth operator mode switched on

-Ren thinks the other way-she said, while putting her head on her pillow-he thinks barely anybody would find my type, as you said, "cute"

-I say Ren is an idiot then-said Nick, realizing now why Nora got drunk

-You know...-said Nora, blushing-I actually followed you because I was concerned for Pyrrha. Once I'm sober I'll watch over her. But in the meantime...could you tell me a story?

-What story?-asked Nick a little bit confused

-Something from your life...maybe your childhood?-she said

-There's nothing interesting there. Do you want to listen to stories about how a 16 year old boy wandered Remnant for 3 years, doing nothing but kill monsters?

-Well it surely is more interesting than me as a child. I couldn't get rid of bullies when I was little, let alone slay monsters

-We all had different childhoods, Nora. But what kept us away in the past is now gone. Now only friendship remains

-So...-Nick suddenly felt Nora's hand slowly going towards his-only friendship, you say?

-Uhhhhhhh...Nora?-said Nick-I think you're still a bit drunk. Why don't you try to fall asleep?

-I can't. What Ren said, it...still hurts-said Nora

Nick couldn't take the tension anymore. He snapped his fingers, lighting his hand with silver runes of Axii and booped Nora in the nose. She suddenly got stunned, implying Axii worked:

-Fall asleep-said Nick and snapped his fingers again, releasing Nora from his sign. After that she indeed closed her eyes and laid her head on the pillow. Nick, now relieved, got up from her bed. He then approached Pyrrha's bed and kissed her in the forehead. Nikos didn't even feel as Nick snaps his fingers again and surrounds her bed with Quen.

However, once Nick left the room of team JNPR, he felt his head aching. It was not a natural headache that sometimes was catching him after a stressing moment. It was pulsing. And, just as Nick feared, his vision started to get red:

-No...not...now-he groaned

-YOU THOUGHT YOU WILL ESCAPE, YOU BRAT?!-yelled the evil voice inside Nick's head

-Leave me alone, please!-Nick yelled back. His eyes were filling up with tears

-SINCE YOU LOVE PUSHING YOUR OWN SIGNS AROUND SO MUCH, LET ME SEE IF THAT WORKS FOR ME AS WELL!-yelled the fiend and then again Nick's hand started to move on its own. He tried to stop it, but the monster took control of his other hand as well. This time, the fiend was even more persistent. Nick's fingers snapped and his hand was now in the runes of Axii. But he couldn't hold his arm with anything this time and his own sign reached his forehead. Nick lost control. The fiend jumped in his place.

The now controlled Nick walked into the room of team ABRN. He walked up to the wardrobe, where he had his usual outfit. He quickly got dressed and went through the window.

Jaune was still standing on a balcony and from there he noticed Nick as he dashes faster than usual across the roofs of buildings in Mistral. He was going towards the hospital. But even though it looked suspicious to Arc, he didn't react, thinking Nick just looks for the pharmacy.

In reality, the possessed Nick was going for the hospital to awaken a certain patient. William was lying in his hospital bed on his observation. Merlot wasn't with him, he went to Haven to take a nap in his room near the basement. Suddenly Vengh noticed his window opening. Behind it stood the now menacing figure of his friend, whose eyes were unnaturally glowing in pale green:

-Geez, Nick. You scared me. Weren't you supposed to be at the celebration?-said the cyborg

Nick didn't respond. He just threw to William a bag with his clothes. Vengh got the message and got up from his bed. He quickly got dressed and followed Nick across the roofs of Mistral:

-Nick, where are we going? Why are you so fast all of a sudden?-William was asking while keeping up with him

Soon both the Hexman and the cyborg reached Haven's basement, where Atlesian representatives made their temporary prison. One of the guards was standing by the door:

-Mr. Van Thorne?-he asked-what are you...

But Nick, without uttering a word, clenched his fist and with a great deal of power punched the guard straight up in the nose. He violently hit the wall and slid to the ground, knocked out. William shivered:

-Nick, what are you doing?!-he yelled

Van Thorne just looked at his cyborg friend. His eyes flashed at him with a menacing gleam:

-Shut. Up.-he said as if he was talking through his teeth

William immediately went silent and followed Nick inside. He was getting a bad feeling about what was happening to his friend.

Nick led William to a cell that was right next to Cinder's. It was not inhabited before, but now it had a special guest inside. When Nick opened the door with the knocked out guard's keycard, William finally understood why he brought him there...kind of.

Seraphimovich was sitting on his cell's bed. Upon noticing Nick and William, he immediately smiled:

-Are you my liberators?-he asked with a sarcasm

-We have a problem-said Nick, but it wasn't his voice. William immediately noticed that

-Is...is that you?-asked Seraphimovich, clearly not believing who he hears coming from Nick

-You are no longer of use to me-said not Nick and stretched out his hand. The kinetic shockwave of Aard left it and hit Seraphimovich, shoving him at the wall. William shivered, but at the same time felt satisfied

-Let me at him as well-said the cyborg and approached the leader of Lahilla. The not Nick smirked.

William grabbed Seraphimovich by his tunic and shoved him again at the wall. The leader of Lahilla was already bleeding from his mouth. His short grey hair was in sweat. However, that didn't stop Vengh from being merciless:

-Feel my pain!-yelled William and a blue laser left his eye, hitting the leader of Lahilla in the eyes. Now instead of pupils Seraphimovich had smoking holes.

Not Nick then walked up to Thomas:

-Let me finish this-he said

William watched in shock as his friend shoves his hand inside Seraphimovich's chest. The leader of Lahilla gushed blood, his golden tunic was slowly getting red. The not Nick had his face torn apart by a wide grin, which was creeping out William:

-Why?-Seraphimovich whimpered, as he was fading away. Even Vengh felt sorry for him at that moment

-There's one simple reason-said the not Nick and got closer to his ear-you just pissed me off

After these words the not Nick released his hand from Seraphimovich's chest. The leader of Lahilla fell down on the floor, dead. Van Thorne was holding in his hand a slowly beating, red shape. William suddenly felt like vomiting. It was Seraphimovich's heart.

At that moment all of a sudden the glow went away from Nick's eyes and the terrifying grin was replaced with a confused face:

-What just happened?-said Nick. This time it definitely was his voice. Once he realized what he has done, he dropped the heart of the leader of Lahilla and jumped back, but he wobbled and fell on the floor

-Nick?-asked William

-Will...what just happened here? Why are my hands covered in blood? Why is Seraphimovich bleeding from his chest and why did I have a human heart in my hand?-Nick was panicking. William then realized, that it wasn't really his friend that dragged him to this basement

-You...don't remember? You came for me to the hospital, you didn't say a word

-I don't remember anything! Last thing I remember, I was standing on the corridor, near Pyrrha's room, and I was in my suit, not these clothes...oh shit!

-What?

-I failed! I let it prevail!-Nick was now crying in hysteria

-What are you talking about?

-It was my secret, but now it's no use hiding it-said Nick-ever since I survived the collapse of the burning shed I was haunted by...this fiend, this creepy voice inside my head, telling me to do stuff too horrible even for me

-That's the voice of your Grimm half, every Hexman has it-said Vengh

-It wasn't the Grimm! It was a different voice. When Hexmen are sentenced to maintain the balance, they are haunted by their inner Grimm, but only when they sleep. This...thing. It attacks me whenever I'm most vulnerable. And it doesn't destroy my balance. It takes control over my limbs, uses Axii against me!

-So I noticed that you weren't turned into the Cursed. But your eyes were glowing and that usually doesn't happen, does it?-said Vengh

-No. This fiend succeeded and possessed me with my own sign. That's why I hated my life, William. Because not only did I have to maintain the balance, but I had to endure this thing's hauntings for so long. I figured out one day that a vial of glowshroom extract silences him, but he's been getting trickier and more persistent lately. When we were at CCT tower he attacked me again. I managed to get rid of him but barely. I was saved by...a different voice in my head. It belonged to a female

-Watch out. I heard that the Grimm calling usually has a female voice as well

-Yes, but I would recognize Salem's voice if she tried to tempt me. This was a different voice. It sounded...pure

-You know what? Let's go. You need to rest. I'll take you to Qrow's room for this night. And we'll have to talk to a guard beforehand

-A guard? You mean...someone saw us?

-Not just saw us. The not you punched him so hard he passed out immediately. Let's just hope he will cooperate

When Nick and William left the basement, the soldier was not alone. He was accompanied by Ironwood and Jeff Halla:

-Nicholas, what on Maidens happened here?!-Ironwood sounded angry. He demanded explanation

-General, listen to me-said Nick in panic-I couldn't control it. It took me over

-Listen-Vengh stood up for his friend-Nick has a problem with balance. We are deeply sorry for injuries your soldier received. But there's something much worse inside that basement

-What exactly?-asked Ironwood

-Dead Seraphimovich!-yelled Nick

Jeff Halla closely inspected Nick's hands and noticed all the blood:

-Did you...-he said

-Yes, but like William said, it wasn't me. It was the Grimm half. I tried to stop it, believe me

-Okay, fine. Calm down-said Halla-you're not going to receive any penalty for that. Seraphimovich was going to be sentenced to death anyway. Even better, you saved Atlas the trouble of burying him. Now it's going to be Mistral's concern

-Ugh, I wouldn't put it quite that way, but it's true-said Ironwood

-We'll change the reports and make it look like an accident. Something about him going insane and tearing his own heart out because of claustrophobia or something like that-said Halla

-But he still broke my nose!-yelled the soldier-aren't you going to punish him for that at least?!

-You do have your medical coverage, Charles-said Halla-just go to the hospital and your nose should get back to its former glory

-Ugh, yes sir-said the soldier, clearly turned off

-Don't worry-said Ironwood-I'll make sure he doesn't utter a word. Now go, before anyone else finds out you've just brutally murdered the most wanted criminal since the formation of the White Fang

William took the shaking from fear Nick to Qrow's room, but before that he let him go to Haven's public bathroom, where he washed his hands and managed to get rid of the blood, and to team ABRN's room, where Nick quickly changed back to his suit.

Qrow was in the room, lying on the couch, holding himself by the head. He clearly drank too much as well:

-Hey, uh...Qrow-said William after opening the door and getting inside with Nick

-Shut the door!-Branwen just groaned

-I was wondering if you could...let Nick sleep here for the night. He's had a rough time with alcohol at the banquet, just like you, and your room was closer, and he can't really walk that well without falling so...

-Fine. Just...shut up and let me sleep-said Qrow, holding himself by the head still

Nick quickly ran to Qrow's bedroom and jumped on his bed. He immediately fell asleep, not wanting to even think of what happened this evening...and generally this day.

Once he closed his eyes, he was haunted by a bad dream.

He was lying on some cold floor, blood was coming out of his stomach. With fear in his eyes he noticed he starts getting cold. He tried to move his hands or legs, but they weren't moving. All of a sudden purple runes flashed around him. Those were Yrden runes. But he didn't plant them on the floor:

-Oh, Niiiiicky...you thought you will be free? Like, ever? What a big mistake, boy-suddenly said a devious voice in the darkness

-Who is that?-asked Nick with a shaking voice

-Don't pretend you don't know me-replied the voice and giggled. After that a light was turned on and Nick couldn't believe his eyes.

It was Von Greim. He was standing a couple of meters away from him. With fear in his eyes Nick looked around and noticed in horror that the traitor of the Brotherhood is surrounded by corpses. Unfortunately, among them Nick recognized every last one of his friends, even Taiyang and Qrow were lying on the ground dead. However, Von Greim still held someone by the neck. It was Yang:

-I made an oath, that I will destroy you, Van Thorne-said Schwartz-and I will, just like every last one of your friends. But I saved the best for last. Watch and admire

In the blink of an eye Von Greim drew his sword and pierced Yang's chest with it:

-Noooooooooooooooooooo!-screamed Nick

At that moment he woke up, sweating, in Qrow's room. Someone was watching him from above:

-Winter? What are you doing here?-he asked, confused

-Shhhhh-said Weiss' sister and put her finger on Nick's lips-you had a bad dream?

-Well...

-Don't lie to me-Winter interrupted him-I want to help you

Nick then ostentatiously looked through the window. It was still night. Winter was in her banquet dress:

-I did-said Nick and covered his face with his hands

-Come with me-said the Schnee and put her hand on Nick's-Qrow is still sleeping, he won't notice you leaving

A little later Winter was dragging Nick by the hand across the corridor. She soon started to struggle with doors to her room, which was in the same wing as Tromberg's office. Once she opened it, she invited Nick inside and closed the door.

Winter's room was much less messy than team SSSN's or ABRN's. She had everything sorted, everywhere. Her bed was made, even her boots were standing equally close to each other near her cupboard. She gently pushed Nick towards her bed and placed him on it. After that she jumped into the bed herself and covered both her and Van Thorne with the quilt:

-Winter, what are you doing?-asked Van Thorne, who was slowly getting back to his senses

-I'll be honest with you. I went to Qrow's room because I wanted to bang you. You've been teasing me for too long, my heart couldn't take it anymore. But when I saw you squirming while you sleep I decided to be more subtle-said Winter but then she suddenly whimpered as she felt a cold touch on her thigh

-I'll be honest with you as well-said Nick-I wanted to bang you ever since I first saw you

-You damn pervert! And here I'm trying to be romantic and shit!-yelled Winter and immediately after that she and Van Thorne were making out.

This time when Nick woke up, the dawn was already at hand. He looked around him-his suit was scattered across the floor along with Winter's clothes and underwear. He stretched his arms and looked at the sleeping beauty. Instead of being rough, that night was more passionate and...completely different. Nick was in bed with a mature, yet beautiful woman, not a hormone buzzing teenage girl like Yang or Blake. He then blushed, remembering how awkward he felt with Winter on top of him.

And now this white-haired beauty was in his arms, sleeping and smiling. But when Nick stretched his hands, Winter suddenly opened her eyes:

-Mmmmmmmm...good morning-she said

-Morning-replied the Hexman

Suddenly Winter's eyes went wide:

-WHAT?!-she suddenly whimpered-why are you in my bed? Why am I naked?! Why are we naked?! Did we...oh don't tell me. We've banged, haven't we?

-You could be more subtle, you know-said Nick-instead of calling it a "bang" we could call it...making magic

-More like making babies-said Winter and giggled-expect a letter from me about 9 months from now on

-You know that Hexmen can't have kids? Unless they do the bonding ritual, but it was done only once and I am its result

-Well...that ritual sure went well-she said and kissed Nick

They were lying in that bed for a while and soon after that Nick was getting dressed. Winter was still in the bed, crawling in it, searching for her scroll. Once Nick was dressed up she got up and put a bathrobe on:

-I hope you're going to keep quiet about it-she said

-Would that be a problem if someone found out?-Nick asked

-A little bit. Just...let's keep it down for now, okay? It's not like I don't feel anything for you, but...if my father or Weiss, not to mention Whitley, found out...I'd be in trouble

-Fine-said Nick and kissed Winter's cheek-I gotta go. I'll see you soon

Van Thorne was walking down the corridor, relieved. Sex with Winter really cleared his mind and pushed away all the traumatic experiences of the previous day. The infected, Seraphimovich, the banquet, Malacoda's visit, the fiend taking control over Nick-it was all wearing him out. But now he returned to his usual state. Now he was back the good old Nicholas Van Thorne. The only thing troubling him now was his nightmare. "Von Greim is definitely alive. I cannot let him fulfill my dream. I cannot let anyone die, especially Yang" he was thinking. "But if Seraphimovich was here in Mistral, that means Von Greim had to be somewhere else doing his thing. The letter we found did mention Sanus, but that doesn't narrow our search one bit. Are they hiding in ruins of Vale? Emerald Forest? Forever Fall? Mountain Glenn? Domgard? Or maybe somewhere else? I must speak to Tromberg about recreating the Brotherhood. If I could restore our intelligence agenda at least, maybe we could have any chance of tracking down this last tumor on the 4 kingdoms. But on the other hand we have Mistral's and Atlas' intelligence as well. Their spies could be more effective. Even better, I'd just rebuild the leading agenda for now. I'll gather everyone in the canteen later and discuss everything" he was still thinking.

As he was pressing the doorknob to team ABRN's room, his thoughts were clouded. And when he entered the room he felt awkward as hell.

Arslan and Reese were standing by the bed, looking at Nick with a bit angry look:

-Where did you disappear yesterday?-asked Altan

-I...uhhhhhh...I got lost-said Nick

-Yeah right! We saw you taking Pyrrha to the dorm, you're not fooling us-said Reese

-Girls, what are you even talking about?

-You and that red-haired baby spend the night together and we don't even know about it?!-said Arslan

-What?! Me and Pyrrha didn't do anything!-Nick was desperately saying. "Even though I had my first time with a girl older than me" he also thought, embarrassed

-Nadir told us some interesting things-said Arslan in an accusatory tone-he heard moans coming from team JNPR's room and saw YOU leave it

-You believe Nadir?! Out of all people, you had to vouch for him? This guy's been trying to turn me into some legendary seducer ever since I got here and I don't even know why!

-He's jealous-said Bolin, who suddenly came out of the bathroom-just like a lot of guys in Haven

-I understand that they might be-said Nick, giving Bolin a sarcastic smile-but that doesn't give him any right to spread rumors! There were only 2 people in team JNPR's room, both were sleeping

-What actually happened to Pyrrha, Nick? Why were her eyes swollen and why did you carry her to her dorm?-asked Reese. Unlike Arslan, she didn't sound like she's going to judge Van Thorne

-I'm sure someone told you how me and her first met-said Nick

-I talked to Ruby once about that-said Bolin-it has something to do with that theory about demons?

-The demons are a fact-said Nick-I've travelled to Inferno to get Pyrrha out of there. But even though she's still here with us, the demons are not brainless. Because of my actions, there are already 2 demons I know about that wreak havoc upon Remnant, searching for everyone that escaped. They're probably also looking for this...

After these words Nick started searching his coat's pockets. He soon took out a golden amulet with a blue crystal in the center:

-What's that?-asked Bolin

-The eye of existence-said Nick-basically, a navigation device for demonic choirs. In hell I could only jump from island to island with it but here it could have completely different powers. I'll see what it can do

Nick put the eye of existence near his eye and turned around from Bolin, Arslan and Reese. At first nothing was happening but soon the vision through the eye changed. It went dark blue and no lights were making it any brighter. When Van Thorne turned around at team ABRN, their shapes were glowing with a bright white light.

-Strange-said the Hexman-you're all glowing white if I look through the eye at you. Wait a second here

Nick left team ABRN's room. He had a theory in mind about what the glow could mean. He opened the door to team JNPR's room and peeked through it. Pyrrha was the only one in the room and she was still sleeping. Nick put the eye of existence near his eye and the vision turned dark blue again. But Pyrrha wasn't glowing white. Instead, her shape was letting out a red glow. "These are souls" thought Nick. "They want this amulet to know which soul to reap"

-I knew it-said Van Thorne as he was opening the door to team ABRN's room-this amulet allows demons to stare into our souls

Reese's eyes got wide:

-Cool!-she said

-No, it's not-said Bolin

-But why do they do that?-asked Arslan

-If a soul escaped from hell, this amulet will detect it. I just looked at Pyrrha through the eye and her soul was glowing red instead of white like yours for example. We need to keep it close to us, Malacoda can't get his hands on it

-Who?-asked Bolin

-Dante's most feared grim reaper-said Nick-basically a demon made of fire

-Oh cool. So from Lahilla we move on to deities. Great!-said Reese, completely losing it

-That's why I decided-said Nick-that the best way to counter the demons will be by rebuilding the Brotherhood

-Oh, so the Hexmen will be back in action?-asked Arslan

-I'll explain everything in the canteen. Meet me there in a couple of minutes. And slap Nadir in the face from me-said Nick and took out his usual outfit from the wardrobe and started to change

Bolin turned around but Arslan and Reese were peeking from behind the wardrobe's doors as Nick covers his bare chest with his t-shirt. When he was adjusting the belt of his pants he noticed the two girls watching him:

-Ekhm...Bolin?-he said

-Fine-said the guy Nick called out and he pulled back the two staring girls

About an hour later everyone was gathered in the canteen. Team RWBY, JNPR, CFVY, SSSN, ABRN came first, shortly after them came Qrow and Taiyang. After them came Goodwitch, Oobleck, Port and Ironwood, who was assisting the Schnees with Jeff Halla. Last but not least came Roman, assisted by Junior and the Malachite sisters, and Merlot, assisted by William. Once Nick made sure everyone's already present, he started his speech:

-As I'm sure you're all aware, we've been through a lot for the past couple of weeks. Our enemies turned out to be stronger than we remembered, but we defeated them. Now with Lahilla out of the picture there are theoretically no obstacles for the Brotherhood to rise yet again. However, before I focus on the task of rebuilding it, there's one last unfinished task I need to complete. A very dangerous criminal, even worse than Seraphimovich, survived. I must find him and make sure he won't stand in our way. And even if we manage to rebuild the Brotherhood, we'll still be few. That's why we need to expand our family, for the task ahead is more difficult than fighting the Grimm

-So we're recreating the legendary Brotherhood?-asked Nick's aunt

-Who said "we"?-asked Nick

-You did-said Sun

-Hmpf-Van Thorne snorted-I guess I did. But I still need to ask. Do you, my friends, want to be a part of the new Brotherhood?

-We'll become...half Grimm?-asked Ruby, unsure

-No. Despite the fact that we'll keep our hierarchy and the schools, there will be no more initiations. The new Brotherhood won't be turning its members into Grimm as it is no longer necessary. I saw all of you in fights, you are strong. There's no need for you to bear the same curse as me

At that moment someone stepped out of the crowd sitting around Nick and kneeled before him. It was Yang:

-You know, that...if you ever decide to bring the initiation back, I'll do it without hesitation?-she said

-I know, my love. But I just don't find it necessary anymore. You're all powerful warriors with incredible skills and weapons. There's no need for you to have Hexmen swords and signs-replied Nick

-Well, we do know that we're all going to join the new Brotherhood-said William-the question that remains is where are we going to set up our headquarters?

-We'll return to Gwynbleidd-said Nick-after all these years

-You really missed it, didn't you?-said Glynda

-Nicholas Van Thorne!-suddenly a loud voice could be heard near the canteen's entrance. It was Tromberg

-What is it?-asked Nick, trying to step out of the crowd surrounding him

-We found him-said Tromberg. She seemed thrilled

-WHAT?!-everyone in the canteen said

As the newly proclaimed Brotherhood was talking to Tromberg, a bullhead from Atlas landed in Haven. As the staircase emerged and footsteps could be heard, everyone on the landing zone could hear angry screams coming from inside it:

-Get your fucking hands off my wrists, you dipshit!-a female voice was yelling

A couple of minutes later Atlesian soldiers were walking down the staircase. They had prisoners cuffed right in front of them but they were still holding them by the wrists, just in case. One of the prisoners, held by the leading soldier, was particularly loud. She was constantly squirming and screaming very vulgar words. She was a chameleon Faunus, everyone could see that because of darker spots on her face, arms and legs. Her brown hair was tied back in a ponytail that curled at the end like a chameleon's tail and her eyes were light gray with a faintly bluish tint. She was wearing a black, plum, and navy sleeveless stealth suit with short legs. The suit had two parts to the bottom section: a navy blue front panel that matched her belts and the rest was plum-colored. The color divide was at the center of her thighs. The stealth suit's zipper was gold, and over it, she was wearing navy blue belts with gold buckles. She was also wearing simple black boots with a cuff and a black glove on her right hand. Everyone could hear as she keeps swearing at the soldier:

-I'll kill your mother, father, brother, sister and I'll eat your fucking children!-she kept screaming with hatred in her eyes. The soldier didn't even bother to respond

Behind him 4 other soldiers were coming out of the bullhead with prisoners as well. But, unlike that chameleon girl, they were quiet. 2 soldiers were holding by wrists two similarly dressed White Fang soldiers. One of them was a ginger girl with prominent antlers coming out of her head and a guy with floppy ears of an impossible to identify mammal with darker skin and short dark brown hair. He was wearing circular glasses on his nose as well. These two were escorted behind the screaming chameleon Faunus girl. At the end two last soldiers were walking down the staircase. They were holding two fox Faunus similarly dressed up in white robes with red hoods. One of them had fox tail and the other one had fox ears:

-Kiss your ass goodbye! It will be no more once I'm done with you, human piece of shit!-yelled the chameleon girl yet again and this time she let out a disturbing laugh

Shortly after that Nick arrived at the landing zone and saw as the soldiers struggle with their Faunus prisoners. He walked up to the leading soldier who was carrying the screaming chameleon girl:

-Hey, are you the ones who Tromberg assigned to me?-the Hexman asked the soldier

-No, sir. We're just transporting prisoners. There is, however, an airship on its way to Haven, maybe if you ask them...

-Mother fucker!-yelled the chameleon girl and shook her head rapidly. She struck the soldier in the nose, but he didn't let go of her wrists

-Whoa! Aren't you just the lovely type?-said Nick to the Faunus girl with a sarcasm

-What?! You want some of that too?!-she yelled, trying to jump at Van Thorne

-Depends what you have in mind-replied Nick

The Faunus girl then got so pissed off she puffed her cheeks. At first Nick thought it's cute, but all of a sudden the chameleon girl spat in his face. At first he felt slightly irritated as he hated being spat on but he just washed the saliva off his face with a tissue he took out of his pocket:

-Well you just wiped lipstick stains off my face with that, thanks-he said

The Faunus girl got even angrier, but this time the soldier behind her hit her in the back of her head, knocking her out:

-I'm so done with her yapping-said the soldier

-It's still impressive you coped with her for so long-said the Hexman

-Thank you, Mr. Van Thorne-thanked the soldier

Suddenly one of the fox Faunus on the back shook his ears and straightened up:

-You are Nicholas?-he asked

Nick, upon hearing someone mentioning his name, walked up quickly to the two Fox Faunus, who were escorted on the back:

-How do you know my name?-he asked confused

-I'm Fennec Albian-replied the fox guy-you are the guy Adam was supposed to meet here in Mistral. Tell me, how is he?

-I have no idea. He's imprisoned with his lieutenant and Tukson in Haven's basement

-Could you at least tell these soldiers to lock us up with them in one cell? We have important news from Menagerie-said the other fox Faunus

-I'm sorry who are you?-asked Nick

-Corsac Albain, Fennec's brother-he replied

-And these two?-asked Nick and pointed at the remaining prisoners, dressed up in White Fang's uniforms

-Deery and Perry, our escort. They didn't know anything about the message, but the soldiers arrested them anyway-said Fennec

-And that chameleon girl?-asked Nick

-That's Ilia Amitola, one of our colonels-said Corsac

-Well-said Nick-I'll try to convince them but I can't promise anything

-Just please try-said Deery all of a sudden, hearing Nick's conversation with the Albains

Nick walked up to the soldier that knocked out the screaming White Fang colonel:

-Can you put these prisoners in the same cell as the other 3 White Fang members?

The soldier just nodded. The Albains smiled at Van Thorne and after that soldiers immediately walked away from the Hexman. He was alone on the landing zone, hearing only as the bullhead that transported the prisoners leaves Haven. Some time later Arslan and Reese also appeared on the landing zone and immediately hugged Nick from both sides:

-You really were amazing in the canteen-said Arslan and giggled-once you come back, we should do some sort of...celebration

-One with wine, fancy food and romantic music-giggled Reese

-Girls, I don't even know if I will come back-said Nick and got red on his face

-Shhhhhh, you will. You always come back to the bed you're destined to lie in-said Arslan and laughed

-Uhhhhh...Bolin?-Nick said

-Fine-said Bolin who suddenly appeared out of nowhere behind the Hexman and grabbed both Arslan and Reese and pulled them away from Van Thorne. After that they got free and followed Bolin back to the dormitories.

Van Thorne took a walk around the landing zone a couple of times, but no airship was coming. Soon someone joined him on the landing zone. It was William:

-Hey man, I convinced Tromberg to let me go with you on the mission-he said

-Ugh, Will, that's not a good idea-said Nick-I already have 4 people assigned for a mission on which I should've gone alone

-I won't even hear of it dude. I wanna see how the place changed as well!

-And you just couldn't wait until I got rid of Von Greim?

-Yeah, I mean...it's not like there was something more interesting happening there

-Oh look, there it comes-said Nick upon noticing an airship proceeding to land in Haven

-Alright man, I'll catch up with you later! I'll go get Stephen and I'll be right behind you!-said William and walked away

Nick approached the airship closer, but making sure he doesn't get crushed by the staircase. When it emerged from the ship, he heard voices coming from inside again:

-Are we there yet?!

-Yes we are, stop asking!

-Yes you are correct. We have arrived safely at Haven Academy in the city of Mistral. Our journey was shorter than I previously calculated

Shortly after that Nick heard footsteps. 4 people walked down the stairs. Nick looked closer. 3 girls and a guy. The guy was young, dark-skinned with dark brown eyes. He was wearing rectangular sunglasses and a dark fedora with a blue trim on his head, as well as an earring on his right ear. He was also wearing a dark vest over an untucked white dress shirt, with a loose tie wrapped around the collar. Completing his attire was a pair of dark dress pants, silver dress shoes and a dark glove on his left hand.

Next to him stood a girl, definitely a Faunus because a large, pink cat tail was behind her. She was a young girl with a light complexion, green eyes and moderate red-orange hair done up in four ponytails with light blue streaks in her bangs. Her cat tail was covered with pink fur, which was getting lighter towards the tip. Her outfit was a large range of bright colors. She was wearing a light blue cropped tank top on top of a dark purple bra, dark purple short shorts under a pink combat mini-skirt and white belt with a yellow winking smiley face on the buckle. Two buttons were fixed to her tank top above her right breast, one purple with a cat design and another green one with a heart. She also had a white cat bell collar around her neck, a pair of bracers on her arms and pads on her shins and knees. A tattoo of a shooting star with a red, green and yellow trail was winding around her right arm. Nick didn't like how she smiled. Something wasn't right about her facial expressions to him. "I hope it's not going to be Coco all over again" he thought.

Next to the Faunus girl stood an even weirder looking girl. She had short, rather curly orange hair with a small ahoge on top that came down to her chin, and she wore a pink bow on the back of her head. She also had bright green eyes, light skin and freckles. She wore a whitish-gray old-fashioned blouse with short gray feminine overalls, as well as a black and green collar with a matching pair of stockings.

Closely to her stood a girl that completely differed from the other two. She had dark skin, short, navy blue hair, and blue eyes. She also had a gold marking consisting of an oval shape surrounded by four smaller circles in the center of her forehead. She was wearing a blue beret, a plain gray button-down shirt with an asymmetrical collar, a blue combat skirt, and fingerless, elbow-length black gloves with a wristwatch on her left hand.

Nick, quite unsure at first, approached the 4 newcomers slowly. The Faunus girl immediately noticed him and smiled. But it was the girl with the pink bow that spoke to him first:

-Salutations!-she said and oddly saluted to Van Thorne

-Uhhhhh...hi?-said Nick, feeling awkward. "And here I thought the Faunus is weird" he thought.

-We require your assistance, student of Haven. We're searching for a man we've been assigned to assist. His name is Nicholas Van Thorne. Have you possibly seen him?-asked the strange girl

-That would be me-said Nick

-Sensational!-cheered the girl with orange hair

-Well, we did hear stories about your looks-said the Faunus girl and approached Nick a bit closer-do you really have cat eyes?

Nick took off his sunglasses. Upon seeing his pale green eyes with narrow pupils, both girls suddenly cheered:

-Oh my gosh, he has narrow pupils! A half kitty like me! Aaaaaaaaaaa!-the cat Faunus squeaked

-And he even has the same shade of green as me! It's so cuuuuute!-squeaked the other girl

-Ugh, I'm sorry you need to experience it-said the dark skinned girl-they're just like that all the time

-Yeah, they didn't even introduce themselves to the guy who single handedly kicked out a dangerous political syndicate from Mistral-said the guy and stretched his hand out to Van Thorne-I'm Flynt. Flynt Coal. Pleasure to meet you

-Same here-said Nick while shaking the guy's hand. The two weird girls were still fangirling a lot near him

-I'm Ciel-the dark-skinned girl introduced herself next-Ciel Soleil. While I may not be fangirling like my two teammates here, I am still honored to meet you as a supporter of your actions

-Geez, the word sure spreads quickly these days-said Nick, shocked he is so popular in Atlas-and who are you two?

-I'm Penny Polendina. Why sir Van Thorne, it is an honor to meet you-the girl with orange hair suddenly started to rapidly shake Van Thorne's hand, making him almost feel like someone's trying to tear his arm off. "I'm starting to feel like Yang before I met her" he thought (fuck this joke, I'm never doing it again!). When the girl let go of his hand, the Faunus girl felt a bit awkward so she just slowly approached Nick:

-I'm Neon Katt-she said, still confident as before

-Nice to meet you-said Nick before her, still a bit frightened after the brutal handshake from Penny

-Hey I know it's weird, but...can I give you a hug?-asked Neon out of the blue-I prefer greeting like that instead of a handshake

-I suppose-said Nick and let Neon gently embrace him

Once she did her greetings and Nick was introduced to his new teammates, he suddenly heard a squeaky voice in the distance that was getting closer and closer. Suddenly some dashing shape crashed directly into Penny, pinning her down to the ground. Nick looked in shock. It was Ruby:

-I missed you sooooooooo much, Penny! Why did you ever think of leaving me?!-she was saying with tears in her eyes

-Ruby...-Penny just said her name and tightly embraced her. Nick then came to a realization that this might be yet another friend Ruby hasn't seen for a long time. First she pinned Yang to the ground like that, then Weiss, then him and now Penny. Nick felt embarrassed, because he knew that among all of Ruby's friends he was the one she knew the shortest. Ostentatiously he looked back and noticed that a couple of meters away Ironwood is assisting a clearly shocked Pyrrha. Nick walked up to his red-haired girlfriend and the general:

-Seems like they got reunited as well-he said

-That...-Pyrrha stuttered-That's...unbelievable...

-What do you mean?-asked Nick, confused

-She...I...destroyed her...-Pyrrha was stuttering from shock

-What?-Nick was even more confused

-Salutations, Mrs. Nikos!-Penny suddenly greeted Pyrrha from a distance. The red-haired girl slowly started to walk towards her and Ruby

-What was she talking about?-Nick asked general Ironwood

-There was an incident on Vytal Festival-said the general-Pyrrha and Penny were in the middle of a match when due to Nikos overcharging her semblance Penny was...shattered

-Damn, that must've looked...brutal-said Nick-but how is she here then?

-Penny's...not a normal girl-replied Ironwood-have you ever heard of "soul harvest"?

-Not much. I only heard it was a very unethical experiment and therefore it was suspended

-Well...it was never really dropped. For years we've been trying to use scientific methods to break into Dante's domain, but that was always leading to a failure, as you know from the history of the Atlesian Inquisition. But one day everything changed. You know how the souls look like in Inferno. You also know that the ectoplasm they leave behind them is used by the demons as a lantern fuel. Well, we created a machine that could extract the gas coming from the ectoplasm, which implies that the machine had access to hell itself, but none of us could find a way to get inside themselves. Once the ectogases were extracted, we put them in the machine's filters. What came out of the filters, Nick...it was aura. Pure with absolutely no corruption of the demonic world left. Shortly after that we've built a robotic female body that could conduct this artificial aura. This...is the body we've built. That is how we created Penny

-Ironwood, you know that irrational relations with hell might cause an interdimensional war?-said Nick

-Hexman, after we created Penny we switched off the machine and never used it again. Penny is the only synthetic human that walks the surface. And we're making sure the machine never gets in the wrong hands

-Then make sure Atlesian science doesn't go further than that-said Nick and walked away-I'll see you when I come back. IF I come back, actually

Nick put all his gear on and approached the people gathered by the airship:

-I'm sorry to break this cute reunion, but we should really go

-That's what I've been saying for the past 15 minutes!-said Ciel

-I'll see you when you come back from the mission! Let's go Pyrrha!-said Ruby quickly, grabbed Pyrrha by the hand and walked away with her

Nick and the 4 people climbed the staircase and sat around in the living room deck. There was a couch which Nick immediately jumped on and got himself comfortable. Next to him sat Penny and Neon:

-So what is it like to share a soul with a Grimm?-asked the Faunus girl

-Neon!-Penny bumped her in the shoulder-don't ask inappropriate questions

-What's inappropriate about that?! You wanted to measure his penis and you think I'm the rude one here?!-Neon sounded offended

-Eeeeeeeeeh?!-Nick yelped and blushed

-Neon, I believe you are the one using inappropriate words-responded Penny-first of all I referred to it as "reproductive organ" and I think I made myself clear when I said it's for scientific reasons. I was always curious about what such a specimen might look like

-Uhhhhh...Ciel? Flynt?-Nick was calling out

-What?-asked Ciel, sticking only her head from behind the pillar she was standing by

-I think Penny's been...corrupted

At that moment Nick felt dull pain in his skull and everything went slightly foggy. When he regained his vision, he was on the floor, restrained by Penny. It didn't take long when he felt someone's hands on his legs. He only managed to see Neon's hair and her tail waving a little bit in the air:

-Ciel!-yelled Nick

At that moment Penny suddenly went flying into the nearby wall. When she hit it, she slowly slid down onto the ground unconscious, but completely unharmed. Ciel stood right next to Nick. Her hand, along with the wrist, was surrounded by a maze of metal wires in a shape of a glove, but at the end of her fingers there were long antennas that looked like a short version of Myrtenaster's blade:

-I owe you an apology for that-said Soleil-ever since we put her main core in the backup copy of her body she's having personality issues. You do know Penny is a synth, right?

-Yeah, I know-said Nick as Ciel was helping him get up. Neon was sitting on the floor, stunned

-As for Neon...we can't do much about her. She's just a huge party cannon. And you know what the worst part of a party is? A one night adventure-said Ciel and quietly giggled

-Okay. Well...I just hope we will succeed on our mission. If Penny starts acting like that while I'll be trying to sneak up on Von Greim none of us will leave Gwynbleidd alive

-Yeah, about that-said Ciel and her weapon transformed into her watch. After that she took out a notepad and a pen-I need to have a detailed analysis of this Von Greim fellow. If you can, tell me all the things you remember about him

-Well I don't know how he might look like today. Last time I fought him I impaled him to a tree. I have no idea how he survived that

-Okay, so durability...now what about his fighting style?

-He had the same training as me-replied Nick-however, if I remember correctly, my father and him sometimes had fencing practice

-So fencing...and what about his aura?

-He doesn't use aura, just like the rest of the Hexmen didn't. He's using the Hexmen signs as his semblance...but he joined up with Lahilla. I don't know if he still maintains his balance

-Ciel, what was all the noise?-asked Flynt who came out of the corridor

-Penny's acting up again-said Ciel-you have the defibrillator?

-Yeah-replied Coal and threw something to Ciel. She immediately caught it

-What is this?-asked Nick

-A defibrillator-said Ciel-for synths of course. I gotta use it on Penny. You better cover your eyes

-Uhhhhhh...why?-asked Nick but then he just felt as Neon suddenly covers his eyes

-You don't want to see what Ciel is about to do-said the Faunus girl. She sounded serious

-Don't touch me!-yelled Nick, still remembering how she and Penny restrained him on the ground and managed to break free from Neon's grip. But then he was graced with a very...bizarre sight.

Ciel was kneeling in front of Penny with the defibrillator in her hand and was spreading the synth's legs wide. Nick suddenly realized what Ciel is about to do and immediately went red on his face:

-What the fuck?!-he yelled

-I know, right? I had the same reaction the first time I had to fix her. Whoever came up with this idea is the most perverted son of a bitch I've ever heard of

-Well, Ciel...-said Neon-why don't you let him try fixing Penny this time? We all had to do that, after all

-What?-Soleil laughed-You must be joking. You've seen what Penny tried to do to him and you were even a part of it. There's no way to tell if she won't try it again. Besides, Nick never worked on robots before according to what Ironwood said

-Oh I'm sure Nick is handy enough to perform a simple task like that-said Neon and she started to weirdly rub against Nick's arm

-No no no, I'm not doing this. She's too pure for me to do...THAT-Nick tried to come out of that situation with no embarrassments but Ciel just shoved the defibrillator in his hand

-Neon's right-the dark skinned girl said-you were able to defeat an entire battalion of technologically superior soldiers, fixing a synth shouldn't be too complicated for you

-But, but, but...do you realize what you're telling me to do? It's a living being after all, she produces aura so if I did...THAT...to her...wouldn't that count as...you know...sexual assault? Or molesting for that matter?

-Stop whining and do this already!-said Ciel and pushed the protesting Nick closer and closer to Penny

-Can you at least look the other way?-asked Nick, blushing

-Nuh uh. I gotta supervise your work-said Ciel. She wanted to sound professional and bossy but Nick felt like she's kind of jealous

-And I need to make sure you're not trying to do any perverted tricks!-said Neon. She sounded both judgmental and jealous

-Who the fuck you're calling perverted?!-yelled Nick, offended

-Ayyyyyy, calm down y'all!-said Flynt all of a sudden once he appeared nearby

-Flynt please. At least you have some decency and look away!-said Nick, desperate a little bit

-You're welcome-said sarcastically Coal as he was walking away

-Alright, I can do this-Nick said and started to breathe heavily as he was stretching his hand forward

With shaking from embarrassment hands Nick slowly lifted Penny's clothing and felt her underwear:

-Move it to the side-said Neon from behind his shoulder

-Shut up...-said Nick with a shaky voice

Looking a bit away and closing his eyes gently Nick grabbed one of the edges of Penny's underwear and with one finger he slowly pushed it to the side. Ciel then suddenly grabbed him by the head and faced it right back at the direction he tried to look away from:

-Don't look away! This is the hardest part! Focus, because if you put this device in the wrong hole you might cause a malfunction

-That's the one malfunction I'd enjoy if I were Penny-said Neon. Ciel looked at her, disgusted

-Just put me in jail already for corrupting this innocent girl-said Nick, feeling as tears are slowly starting to form in his eyes

With even more shaky hands he slowly approached Penny's area between her legs with the defibrillator. But just when he was about to insert it, his hand was starting to shake so much he couldn't aim it well. Neon noticed that and gently pushed Nick's elbow from behind and then Van Thorne at last inserted the defibrillator. "I can feel my heart beating in my throat" he thought. "I bet they were pranking me and when I come back Ironwood is going to throw me in one cell with Cinder. If that happens...there will be no way out this time":

-Ahahahahahahahahahahahaha!-Neon was dying from laughter on the floor

-Good job Nick-said Ciel-you went through the worst part. Now all you need to do is to press the red button. I'll take it from there

-Yeah, yeah. Sure...-said Nick and with a still shaking hand he pressed a button on the defibrillator. It was now letting a sound as if it was charging up electricity

-Your face! Oh my gosh, your face! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA hahahahahahahahahaha!-Neon screamed from laughter

-Ugh-groaned Ciel

-It was the funniest thing I've ever seen! Seriously, not even Yang's face when I joked about her tits can live up to that! Hahahahahahahaha!-Neon was still laughing

At that moment the defibrillator let out a sound and in the next second Penny jumped a little bit. Once she was back in her place, she was conscious again:

-What happened?-she asked and then noticed Nick sitting next to Ciel-Sir Van Thorne?

-Uhhhhhhh...-Nick stuttered

Neon was still dying from laughter. At first confused, Penny soon realized the position she's in. Clearly embarrassed she took out the defibrillator and quickly covered herself with her clothes:

-Heyyyyyy, don't worry now! It's all over!-said Neon, finally calming down and awkwardly rubbing her head against Nick's arm

-WHAT?!-Penny suddenly blushed-He...he...HE WAS PERFORMING THE SURGERY?!

-Uhhhhhhh...-Ciel stuttered. She felt awkward as well

Suddenly Polendina let out an extremely loud squeak. Nick, afraid that he might get thrown out through the airlock for that jumped on his legs. With his hair standing straight up he dashed like a torpedo across the corridor on the deck and jumped into the nearest cabin. It was empty.

Once Nick made sure he's safe he looked around the cabin. Mostly the place looked like a standard hotel room. There was just one bed, a door that clearly led to the bathroom and there was also a small desk. Nick couldn't see any personal stuff lying around so he figured this cabin was supposed to be his if he didn't get to know his new companions that awkwardly. Near the bed Nick noticed a small plastic box. When he opened it, he realized what it could be. It was filled with ice so naturally that was a convenient mini fridge. Inside that fridge Nick found a bottle. He took it in his hands. It was the Ferghino champagne, the same champagne he and Pyrrha were drinking on their ferry to Patch Island. He smiled upon that memory...and then noticed a card on the bottle. He took it in his hand and read what was written on it. "Welcome to the team". Nick was wondering what could that message mean when all of a sudden the door to the room opened and someone walked in. Nick turned around, hiding the champagne bottle behind his back. It was Penny:

-Sir-she said-I just wanted to say that...

At that moment she noticed the champagne in Nick's hands and her eyes got wide:

-You were not supposed to find it! Not yet! Give it back please!

And she ran up to Nick and started to stretch her hands forward behind him, trying to catch the champagne bottle. Nick tricked her and gently threw the bottle on the bed. However, once Penny noticed that it was too late. All of a sudden Nick wrapped his arms around her and hugged tightly:

-What are you doing?-she asked but then felt warm and saw that Nick is glowing

-Just don't move for a moment, okay?-he said

Van Thorne's aura was colliding with Penny's. Nick was making sure the girl really had a soul and with that he was also unlocking it so that she stops malfunctioning. At some point Penny's hands started to feel cold again. That way Nick knew he did what he wanted to do. He let go of Penny. She was stunned for a second but soon pulled herself together:

-Why did you do that?-she asked

-I was just trying to unlock your aura

-Oh. Well ummmm...thanks, but I'm not a normal girl

-Maybe. But you are human, because despite all that metal you have a soul

-I guess...but I'm not feeling it yet. You surprised me with that and...

-Oh shush, Penny. If you need more proof then so be it

-Sir, what are you...

Nick suddenly got awkwardly close to the orange haired girl and shortly after that she felt as the Hexman's lips press against her cheek:

-Sir, I'm overheating. Please stop!-she said and suddenly pushed Nick at the wall. This time he wasn't very knocked out but he still hit the ground with a painful sound. Penny gasped and when Nick was about to get up he saw that something's forming in her eyes. Those were tears:

-Ouch...-Nick groaned as he was getting up

-I'm so sorry sir! I didn't mean to...

-Alright first of all-Nick said-do not call me sir

-But...I need to use some title-Penny seemed upset-would you prefer if I called you "daddy"?

-OH HELL NO!-Nick almost yelled and his hair jumped straight up yet again-just...just call me Nick, okay?

-I'll try...

After these words someone knocked at the cabin's doors. Flynt entered the room without waiting for response:

-Guys, we're here

-Already?-asked Nick

-Well...not really. We received a transmission from Domgard asking for help. We're proceeding to land on the meadow near the Tinsel

-Right. I shall be combat ready-said Penny and left Nick's cabin

Soon everyone was waiting for the staircase to emerge from the airship's entrance. As soon as it did Nick and his four companions walked down and landed in the soft grass of the meadow near Domgard. The village itself could be seen within the distance of about 20 steps. Shortly after the airship, William's Stephen landed closer to the Tinsel's shore:

-Oh my, who even flies such a piece of trash?-said Neon upon noticing the cyborg's tiltrotor

-Well it may not be as advanced but it's still a vintage piece of art-said Flynt

William soon joined Nick and the 4 other people near Domgard's first buildings:

-Ah, so that's where we're stopping by? Well lucky for you I know this town like the palm of my hand-said William

-I'm sorry who are you?-asked Ciel

-That's Will, my friend from Gwynbleidd. But ummmm...how do you know about Domgard?-asked Nick

-That's a long story-said William-come on, let's see if the inn is still opened

-You go to the inn if you must-said Nick-we have other business here

-Okay, just when you find out about it inform me-said the cyborg as he walked away deeper into Domgard

-I don't trust this guy-whispered Ciel into Penny's ear

-Let's see what the village wants from us-said Flynt

Near the town hall there was already a mature man in a red robe awaiting them:

-Are you the huntsmen?-he asked

-That is correct-said Penny

-I'm Elder Shay. Welcome to Domgard. Please, let us get inside-he replied

The man in the red robe led Nick and his 4 companions into a room in the town hall where he had a desk but also a couple of armchairs around a glass table where he sat around with his visitors. Shortly after that a girl, who seemed like she works for the Elder, walked in with a tray that had cups full of tea on it. As everyone took their cups Elder Shay started his conversation:

-I do realize that you have an important task to attend to but we couldn't risk losing an occasion to ask for help which we really need. It's about the Grimm

-The Grimm?-asked Ciel-you seem like a peaceful village. Why would you have a problem with Grimm?

Elder Shay gave Ciel a sad smile and looked down inside his cup:

-I am pleased to hear that you see us like that. However, the folks suspect this problem might be tied to our history

-History?-asked Flynt. Nick focused more on what the Elder was saying

-Yes. You see, 3 years ago here in Domgard we had a major Grimm invasion. A group of Merlot's scientists disguised as doctors, who even had a hospital next to the town hall, lured a swarm of Beowolves into the village. But the Beowolves weren't alone. Some other Grimm came with them, a far worse one

-A worse one?-asked Nick-what did it look like?

-It was...like a human, on a horse. It looked as if the human was a part of the horse. It had these long loose arms and that mask with horns emerging from it...

-Say no more-Nick interrupted him-I know what Grimm you're talking about. What do you need us to do?

-Well...ever since that attack, Domgard's safety has been threatened numerous times. Vale dispatched a squadron of soldiers to protect us, but after the capital city collapsed the soldiers lost any will to fight and abandoned us. Ever since they left, we've struggled to survive the attacks. Now there's a new one and it's starting to become a frequent one. At night, when most of the settlers are trying to sleep, a strange Grimm is, as they say, "haunting" their homes

-If there really are reports of hauntings in Domgard then that's definitely a work of...

-Geist-Penny finished what Nick wanted to say for him-that's definitely a Geist

-Well you seem professional from what you're saying-said Elder Shay-I'd be glad if you could help us. So glad in fact, that I would reward you with 50 Liens

-We don't really...-Neon tried to say but Nick bumped her in the arm

-You know, Geists are pretty spooky, not to mention hard to kill. I think all of us deserve more for destroying it-said Nick in his manipulative tone and half-smiled

-I see your point. 100 then, how does that sound?

-I mean, we're talking about a Grimm that can possess objects. That would require setting up a bait and causing my friends some harm to get this thing killed

-Oh, well...I suppose I should have looked further into that. 200 Liens it is then. I swear it's all I've got

-You're not trying to play me out like in "Sneaky Kitties", are you?-asked Nick. Neon gave him an angry look-suggest some reasonable price or else we're leaving

-200 is all I can do, I swear! But, if you need more, I can talk to the blacksmith to fix you some gear for your other task! And I could give you some of the stuff I have in my vault. Just please don't leave us with that thing

-Hmmmmm...alright. We have a deal, Elder Shay. You can expect to have the Geist dead by next dawn

As Nick and his companions left the town hall, the incredibly angry at him Penny violently shoved him into a wall right after closing the front door:

-What was that supposed to be?!-she yelled. She was clearly angry

-What's your problem?-asked Nick, confused about her reaction

-You've bled this poor man dry of all the money and manipulated him into giving you even more! And for what? You thought you'll accomplish something by that? You behaved just like another bloody mercenary that doesn't see anything but his crooked nose!-Penny yelled at him even louder. Ciel, Neon and Flynt quietly snuck away from her and Nick

-Say whatever you want, but I don't wish to risk my life for people who brought the Grimm on themselves

-But you've heard what the Elder said! It wasn't their fault, it was all because of Merlot's sick experiments-after that she let Nick go

-The Elder...was lying-said Nick while heavily breathing after being shoved at the wall-the Nuckelavee doesn't exist on Sanus

-Then how will you explain the fact that there sometimes is a Beringel attack in Atlas? Nick, the area doesn't matter for the Grimm, they exist wherever they want. What you did was...sickening. And I hope you will not take this cash from him if we destroy this Geist-after these words Penny started to walk away from Nick

-And if I don't?

-Then Ironwood is going to find out about the defibrillator-said Penny and smiled sneeringly at Nick

The night was slowly coming to Domgard. Nick was walking the streets alone, about to reach the abandoned old hospital next to the town hall where he was supposed to meet his companions. But upon reaching them, someone else was with them as well:

-Elder's secretary?-Nick asked upon seeing her

-I'm more of a maid-she responded-Flemme Striga

-She contacted us when we were at the inn-said Flynt-she says she can act as the bait for the Geist

-And when the Geist starts chasing her...-said Neon

-Then we'll attack-said Ciel

-Right-said Nick

-Okay, the Geist usually comes from where we are at the moment, so you can set up the ambush

-Alright, let's split up-said Penny-Nick, you deal the first blow, after that Ciel and Neon try to wound it. Flynt, you use your semblance to cut off its path. I'll strike from above and finish it

-Got it-everyone said and moved to their positions. Nick hid behind the wall of one of the houses and drew his pistol and a sword. From his position he could see Neon and Ciel hiding behind a wall of another house. In the distance Flynt was hiding at the back of the inn, while Penny was on the last building's roof, clinging into the chimney from the side that wasn't exposing her to the village's main road. Nick looked from his cover at the direction from where they previously came. Flemme Striga was standing near the ruins of the hospital, whispering something quietly. Nick wouldn't think it was weird but then he noticed that for a split-second when she opened her eyes she had a purple glow in them. Nick recognized that glow way too well. "Oh no" he just thought because then throughout the entire Domgard a menacing gust of wind blew. Flemme looked to her right, heard a screech and started running. When she crossed Nick, he could smell sulfur. Now he had no doubt who Flemme really was. But he had to delay dealing with her for later, because he felt the Geist closing in.

He immediately jumped out of his cover and shot a couple of shots at the Grimm. Now it focused on him instead of Striga. As the Geist tried to dash at him, Neon and Ciel suddenly jumped out of their cover. Neon had a glowing turquoise nunchaku in her hand and Ciel had her wired glove with claws. They were hitting the Geist from both sides, Ciel's claws were actually leaving behind blue lasers which were additionally hitting the Geist. Soon Flynt joined in on the fun and took out his weapon:

-Uhhhhh...Flynt? That thing isn't a cobra, you're not going to calm it down with this trumpet!-yelled Nick as he was covering Ciel and Neon

But Coal didn't even look at him. He just started playing the instrument he took out. As sound waves were stunning the Geist (making it even more angry), Flynt's shape suddenly started to glow and all of a sudden Nick noticed there are four Flynts standing around instead of one. All 4 trumpets started to yet again play the horrendous melody, making the Geist more and more annoyed. Ciel, Nick and Neon were still mercilessly hitting it but then they heard someone yelling from above:

-Watch yourselves down there!

It was Penny. Nick looked up. She was in the air, surrounded by a dozen of strangely looking blades. They had a green glowing line somewhere in the middle. But even though Nick was amazed by how spectacular Penny looked with all these swords around her he jumped back like the rest of his companions and watched as Polendina dashes down on the Grimm with her blades entirely glowing green. But then the Geist did something unexpected. Instead of dodging Penny, it raised its hand in the air. A menacing red shape resembling an eye appeared in the palm of the Geist's hand:

-Penny, watch out!-Nick screamed but it was too late. Penny's blades hit the symbol of the eye. Penny looked surprised herself. The Geist then suddenly turned into a stream of black smoke and started to fly around Penny. Once the smoke disappeared Penny hit the ground. She wasn't moving:

-Penny, are you okay?-Neon tried to run to her but Nick immediately stopped her as well as Flynt and Ciel who wanted to take a step forward as well

-Don't go near her-said Nick-we have to keep our distance

At that moment Penny opened her eyes and jumped on her legs. Her orange hair was covering her eyes, she was looking down on the ground. Nick felt as if he was in a puppet theater. He was praying inside for it not to be true.

But he was wrong.

Suddenly Penny's eyes flashed at the rest of her friends. They weren't green anymore. They were bloodshot red and her pupils were narrow. The lines on her collar and stockings were glowing in the same color as well:

-Penny?-asked Ciel, creeped out by her new look

-So...-said Penny, but it wasn't her voice. Something in it was putting a shadow over her actual cute voice(literally)-you've finally showed up

-Who is this?-asked Ciel, now confused with what was happening

-I'm not talking to you-said the not Penny, rapidly turning her head to Ciel and back-you are the one I'm looking for

The not Penny pointed her finger at Nick:

-Me?-Nick was confused as well

-NOT YOU!-the not Penny yelled-behind you

Nick turned around and saw Elder Shay's maid, Flemme Striga, standing behind him:

-Long time no see, beast-said the maid

-That is correct, succubus-said the not Penny

-A suck a what?-asked Neon, she was very confused as well

-Succubus-said Nick-former female lust demons. That's why I could smell sulfur

-Whatever Salem wants from me, I don't have it-said Flemme

-That impostor is of no concern to me. I only serve the True One-said the not Penny

The succubus suddenly went pale, her eyes grew wider. Nick got even more confused, seeing that even a female demon has something to be afraid of:

-You can't possibly mean...-stuttered Striga-It can't be!

-It is-said the not Penny and the swords started to move around her as well. They had red lines instead of green as well-when you rejoin your master, tell him to beware. The eclipse of stars is near

The possessed by Geist Penny raised her swords, ready to plunge them in the succubus. Flemme was just standing stunned.

But then...everything changed in the blink of an eye.

The abandoned hospital next to Elder Shay's house suddenly started to give light to its surroundings. Mostly because...it was entirely on fire. Fire was coming out of windows and new holes were being drilled as the former hospital was getting consumed by flames and smoke. In front of the burning compound Nick noticed a shape. Someone was standing nearby. When for a second the smoke stopped being so thick Nick recognized the shape way too well:

-William!

-Ghaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!-screeched the not Penny-too much fire! Must...abort!

Suddenly a stream of black smoke started to come out of Penny's mouth and soon took the original shape of the Geist. It flew past Nick and the rest of his companions. The Grimm was trying to escape:

-Come back here you...-yelled Nick and made a jump after the Geist. He landed a lot closer to him. The Grimm was about to enter the meadow near Domgard, but then...it suddenly stopped moving. A circle of purple symbols surrounded him. Nick was getting closer. The Geist could already hear the Hexman drawing his sword. He was now close to him. He snapped his fingers in the spare hand. The Geist knew death is coming:

-You've assaulted my friend-said Nick without emotions-you've shielded yourself with her body, thinking we would destroy her along with you. You're even more pathetic than your coworkers, I didn't think it was possible

The Geist then noticed as he points his lit on fire hand forward. A fire beam started to burn the body of the Grimm. The Geist was letting out screeches from pain. Nick tightened the grip on his sword and swung it above his head:

-Whoever this True One fella is, if you see him again tell him I say "fuck you"-said Nick as he was finishing off the burning Geist.

Now the Grimm was dead. No more haunted nights in Domgard. The succubus is safe, Elder Shay is safe, William is safe and most importantly Penny is safe.

When Nick approached the rest of his companions, Penny was slowly regaining consciousness as Ciel was holding her gently in her arms and combining her aura with Penny's:

-The Geist is no more-said Nick

-Good. And also...I see that Penny's aura has been unlocked. You wouldn't happen to be the culprit of that, would you?-asked Ciel

-Well...

-Nnnnnnngh...-Penny suddenly groaned and opened her eyes-what happened?

-It's alright Penny. You had a close encounter with a Geist, but it's already gone-said Nick

Van Thorne then looked at the burning abandoned hospital but couldn't see William anywhere near there. But he had much more important matters to attend to:

-You, succubus-said Nick upon noticing Flemme Striga trying to sneak away

-I know what you're thinking. I should've told you all about my heritage, but I was scared. After all, I know what people think of demons if they know of them at all-she said, clearly afraid of the Hexman

-What I'm wondering instead-said Nick-is why did you help us in the first place

-Two reasons-responded Striga-not all demons obey Dante, especially if they are put in retirement. Second, I hate Grimm scum as much as you do. Seriously, I think humans and demons could unite because of these monsters

Nick barely contained his laughter upon hearing about a union between humans and a race that forever tortures their souls:

-Wow, demons have bureaucracy?-asked Flynt

-Well, duh. Who do you think invented it?-asked Flemme. Despite the fact that she was no longer under Dante's command (thus not slaughtering the people she ambushed the Geist with), she was definitely proud of being a demon

-Well, we'll be discussing this further once we have some place to stay for the night

-I have my small chamber near the Elder's office. I can take you there-said Flemme

Everyone agreed and followed Striga to the town hall. They couldn't possibly suspect that somebody's watching them from a safe distance:

-That's bad-said a voice from the bushes near the hills that were leading to the forest, where Gwynbleidd was, and suddenly he and his two companions stuck their heads out of the bushes

-I'm never following your reconnaissance plans again, Arthur-said the scorpion faunus who stuck his head out along with the third guy

-Shut up, Tyrian-Watts replied-remember what Malacoda said, we're not doing this your way

-Oh give me a break! What is wrong with capturing a bunch of teenagers and forcing them to tell us where the real relic is?

-Because there's almost no chance they actually know it themselves-Hazel replied

-Besides, I'm curious to see what that Hexman can do-Watts added-maybe, just maybe, he could lead us to Ozpin

-Well, we lost a Geist so the wizard has no excuse to show up now-said Tyrian

-That Geist wasn't under our queen's command-said Hazel-didn't you hear what it said when it possessed that artificial girl?

Tyrian puffed his cheeks for a second:

-I didn't hear that. Mainly because you were shoving your foot in my cheek and I was more focused on that-he said

-Hazel is right-said Watts-this Geist wasn't under Salem, he openly admitted he serves the "True One"

Tyrian suddenly grinned very widely:

-Well, well...you know what that means?-he said menacingly

-Uhhhhhhh...-Watts and Hazel looked at the scorpion faunus, creeped out to the core

-Eye...for an eye-Tyrian whispered and let out an incredibly disturbing giggle

The next day everyone turned up at Elder Shay's office, as promised. Penny managed to recover from the Geist's possession entirely and the next day she was back to her old self when Shay welcomed them with a warming handshake:

-Ah, my dear huntsmen! I am so pleased to see you! A lot of people saw your ambush on the Geist. While I may not be entirely happy about you using a living bait, I am still very happy to know that my people will no longer be haunted by this Grimm. We shall double the amount of torches at night so that other Geists don't think about trying the same thing

-We're glad we could help-said Nick and smiled. But Penny gave him an angry look, remembering how he manipulated the Elder the day before

-Oh I almost forgot!-the Elder said and took something from his desk. He passed it to Nick. It was the 200 Liens and some strange looking credit card-like I promised, 200 Liens

-And what's that?-Nick pointed at the credit card

-That is a multitask keycard. With it you'll get access to my potion stash at the Blacksmith's shop. Also if you show him this card, he should give you a discount on any weapon you want. He's very talented and very competent, his name is Rautar

-I will remember-said Nick and took the card

-Ummmm...sir?-asked Shay-you didn't take the money

-I changed my mind-said Nick-keep it

Penny looked at Nick, surprised. He only gave her a friendly look and winked to her. She blushed and smiled in a very cute way.

As Nick and the rest of his companions left the town hall they started to walk around the village, searching for the blacksmith's workplace. People were recognizing them and were cheering up upon seeing them, especially Nick. The burned ruins of the old hospital were being swept by some of the villagers. After walking for a couple of minutes Nick reached the blacksmith's shop. He was cooling off by the entrance:

-Ayyy, you must be the guys who killed the ghost-he greeted them

-That's correct-said Nick-and you must be Rautar, if I'm not mistaken

-At your service-he responded and smiled

-Elder Shay told us he's got a potion stash somewhere in your shop-said Nick

-Right, you've got the keycard so I guess you tell the truth. Follow me

Rautar took Nick and his companions to his working room and showed them a small safe hidden in the floor. Nick put the keycard near the safe and it automatically opened itself. Inside Nick found 4 potions in tall flasks and a photo. He took the 4 potions and opened each flask, smelling what's inside:

-That's the glowshroom extract-Nick said smelling the green flask

Upon smelling blue flask:

-Iceflower decoction-he said, disgusted

Upon smelling red flask:

-Red sap compote. I guess even an Elder can't deal with hangovers

Upon smelling yellow flask:

-Rapier wasp moonshine. Looks like someone likes to hit the liver pretty hard

That was all the potions Nick found. He wanted to close the safe when he noticed what was on the photo inside. He took it in his hands and looked closely.

There was a group of 7 people on this photo. In the middle Nick immediately recognized Elder Shay, smiling and closely hugging the people he was surrounded by. To his left Nick could see a harsh-looking brunette girl, while to his right a group of the other five people stood. One had a bit messy brown hair and a smug expression, next to him stood three guys with different blonde hair length. The one with the longest hair was hugging the last guy. Nick looked closer at him. He completely differed from the rest. He was only half-smiling, had an eyepatch, a cane in his hand and his two legs were made of wood with just boots at the end so that they look like regular feet. Nick almost dropped the photo on the ground. "It's...William" he thought to himself:

-Ah, I see you found the photo-said Rautar who suddenly appeared behind the Hexman

-Gaaaaaaah!-Nick screeched surprised-I'm sorry I didn't mean to be nosy or anything

-No problem-said the blacksmith-anyone who comes to Domgard should find out about the courage all these boys had

-Courage?-asked Nick

-The boys you see on this picture were local odd jobs people. They were hanging out in the inn and called themselves "Rats"-said Rautar and gently took the photo from Nick's hands and looked at it in a nostalgic way. Nick peeked from behind his shoulder. After that he started pointing at the people on the photo:

-As you know this guy is our Elder. I know, it's hard to believe he used to actually shave all his facial hair. That girl next to him is Mithra. She was the only girl among the Rats, almost all of them had a serious crush on her, especially this guy on the right side of the Elder, Artaud. He might seem like a dick and a seducer at first. He sure was posing as one, but it was a very helpful kiddo. These three blonde guys standing next to him are brothers. The one with the shortest hair is Sorel. He mostly specialized in cooking so he helped out at the inn multiple times. Next to him, the one with teary eyes, is Rience. He was usually scouting the Tinsel and giving the Elder reports. Now this last blonde guy, that's Vilge. Now I remember him well in particular. Boy liked everything about horse riding, so he usually came by my shop and helped me out with forging horseshoes. Usually that's when we were bonding.

-And that last guy with the eyepatch?-asked Nick, definitely curious

-Ah, him...-Rautar clearly felt upset talking about William-tragic case with this boy. He came on the gravedigger's caravan among the corpses of those who fell with him in Gwynbleidd. When he turned out to be alive Artaud and his guys immediately looked after him. Poor boy, lost an eye and both his legs, he was growing a hunch, looked like some of these beggars who just make you feel bad for them. But despite his trauma he was still trying to be as helpful as possible. He didn't have a crush on Mithra like others, he was clearly mourning someone. I never saw him smile, what we see on this photo is the closest he ever been to that

-What happened to these Rats?-asked Nick

-The Elder surely told you about the Nuckelavee's attack. It was all work of these Merlot witches who were nursing people back to health in that Haghaus next to the town hall. Since we had no significant defenders back then, the Rats decided to take them on with just one sword per person

-And?

-They sacrificed their lives, murdered countless Beowolves, but in the end the Nuckelavee brutally killed them all. The crippled kid's corpse was never found, only his two wooden legs. We assumed he got eaten by the Beowolves...

As Nick was talking with Rautar on his way out of the working room, William was in the inn, sipping a glass of some unknown brown alcohol. The bartender was looking at him closely. There was nobody else in the inn:

-Hey-he suddenly said to William-don't I know you from somewhere?

Vengh only gave him a questioning look and raised his eyebrow. After that his cybernetic eye started to glow brighter. Upon seeing that, the bartender shuddered:

-Forget I said anything-he ended the conversation

While William was getting wasted in the inn, Nick and his companions were at the hall of the blacksmith's shop. Nick then remembered about the other thing the card Elder gave him could do:

-Hey, Rautar-he said-the Elder told me we could place an order at your shop as a return of the gratitude for killing the Geist

The blacksmith smiled so widely even his moustache moved up a little bit:

-Of course, huntsmen! And with that card, I can do your order for half of the original price

-So the discount's just 50%?-asked Nick. Penny, upon hearing that, bumped him in the arm

-We'll definitely take it-said the orange haired girl for Nick

-Splendid! What would you like me to forge for you?-asked Rautar in an enthusiastic tone

-I'm going to need some Dust powered anti-tank rifles, AA guns, maybe some heavy machineguns and certainly lots of siderite metal shields for this artillery-said Nick

-Well...huh, that's quite a big order. It will take time, but I'll work as hard as I can!

-Alright, just tell me how much do I need to pay you-said Nick

-I guess 3000 Liens should do it-said Rautar

-No problem-said Nick-now, if you need to consult me, I left you my scroll number on the front desk. Right now we need to go. Our main mission awaits

Nick, Penny, Neon, Ciel and Flynt left Rautar's store and were slowly walking towards where Domgard was ending, which was near the Tinsel river. It was flowing towards the valley where the City of Vale was nearby. But before Domgard it was going down a steep hill, emerging from a coniferous forest. Somewhere in that forest, which was full of Grimm even worse than the ones in Emerald Forest and Forever Fall combined, was the only human asylum. It was Nick's and William's home village-Gwynbleidd, where Schwartz Von Greim, Nick's arch nemesis, is hiding somewhere. As the entire team was leaving Domgard behind them, William looked back at it when they were climbing up the hill and were close to the forest. He looked at the landscape of the village for the last time and sighed. "Someday I will find a way back home too, Artaud" he thought:

-Hey, Will! You need some rest?-asked Nick, who was a bit farther than him on the hill. Penny, Neon, Ciel and Flynt were just behind him

-Shut up, I'm not that old!-he yelled and laughed sincerely as he was climbing

And thus, the temporary team NWPNCF shortly after disappeared in probably the most spooky forest on Remnant in search for...home.


	15. Gwynbleidd (story arc finale, very long)

-Come on, Will! You don't want to get lost in the needle forest!-yelled Nick as William was barely catching up to him. Penny, Neon, Ciel and Flynt were just in front of him

-I'm coming! Just got stuck in these damn branches!-yelled William's voice from a distance

-Why do you call this a needle forest?-asked Flynt

-It's a coniferous forest. You are bound to get stung by the needles on these trees-Nick replied

The team was walking through that forest for over 15 minutes now. Ever since they left Domgard and climbed the hill leading to the forest they divided into 2 groups: Those who walk faster and those who wait for William. Nick was in the second group:

-Listen, you go a bit further and wait there. I'll get William and reach you

Everyone just nodded and walked away. Nick stood there a little longer, leaning on a tree, waiting for William. When the cyborg finally came, Nick gave him a look from under his hat:

-I cut all the branches that were blocking the path-said the Hexman-why didn't you actually walk along with us?

-It's complicated, Nick-said William

-I know about Rats-said Van Thorne-and I still can't believe you never told me

William gave Nick a very hard stare. His eye was glowing blue very brightly:

-And what can you possibly know about this, huh?!-he asked, clearly irritated

-As someone who was in Gwynbleidd just like you, I think I know enough-said Nick, curving his lips

William suddenly realized and went silent immediately. Nick was trying to look him in the eyes directly yet again, but the cyborg was avoiding his sight:

-Will, listen. If you ever have any problems dealing with the loss of your friends-said Nick-you can always come by and talk to me. And one day...maybe we'll get to kill that Nuckelavee. Together. Like we used to kill Oppels and Wa-Langs here in this forest when we were kids, remember?

-Heheheh...-Will laughed-I remember. We were coming back, carrying these heavy swords on our backs, covered in dirt and with wide grins on our faces. And no matter how hard they were pulling our ears, we were still smiling

-And we were grounded for a week after this. Every single time-said Nick and smiled. He felt tears slowly dripping from his cheeks

William also seemed to feel nostalgic. He looked at the wires of Stanley on his hand. Nick then patted him on the arm:

-Come on. Let's go home-he said

After that talk William didn't fall behind anymore. His steps were synchronizing themselves with Nick's. He clearly felt better. Soon he and Nick reached the rest of the group. They were standing closely to each other. They seemed focused:

-What's up?-asked Nick-you look like you just saw a ghost

-Shush-said Penny and put a finger on her lips-I believe we might not be alone

Nick and William jumped closer to the group and listened closely as well. They could only hear wind blowing from time to time, trees rustling and their own breaths. But at some point Nick heard a breath that didn't belong to him, William, Penny, Neon, Ciel or Flynt:

-Bushes at ten, Neon!-he commanded

-Aye aye sir!-Katt cheered and was just about to attack the bushes with her nunchaku

When suddenly the bushes jumped up and shattered into pieces, covering everyone in the group with leaves and branches. Right after that they heard very fast steps coming from every other direction. When Nick and his group got rid of everything that was stuck in their faces, they looked around. A group of people in dark green outfits were surrounding them. They all had brown capes and hoods over their heads, thus the group couldn't see their faces. One of them differed from the rest. He didn't aim at them from a primitive bow. With one swing of his hands a well-made, grey and white rifle with a scope appeared in his hand and he aimed it directly at Neon:

-What is your problem, you people?!-yelled Ciel at one of the hooded attackers

-Hm?-the attacker with the rifle muttered

- _"Nie jesteście tu mile widziani, oligarchowie!"_ -one of the hooded people said aggressively

-Ummmmm...Nick, what he said?-asked Flynt

-They don't want us here-Van Thorne replied

-Oy-the guy with the rifle said-spokoy tam, chwopaki. Ya shie tim zayme

-The fuck is this guy saying?! I don't understand anything-Neon started to panic

-I think it's supposed to be Gwynbleiddish, but something's off here-said William

-He has an outsider accent-said Nick-this guy is not from Gwynbleidd

-I think I might recognize this voice...-said Penny, barely believing her eyes

The hooded person with the rifle put his gun away and hid it behind his back. He got closer to the group he was pointing his weapon at and pulled back his hood. He had light-brown spiky hair and hazel eyes:

-Oro Grizaj-said Penny upon seeing his face-so you really didn't die back there at Shion village?

-It's a long story-responded the guy-I should've known that people still remember me as a Huntsman

Nick peeked from behind at the guy who Penny recognized as a man named Oro Grizaj. But then his eyes noticed him:

-I remember you-he said and smiled

-Me?! B...but...how? It's the first time I see you-Nick couldn't believe he recognizes him

-Last time we met it was much, MUCH hotter around us-replied Oro

Nick's mouth opened wide. It WAS another person that escaped hell:

-But I remember what Tukson said! When the rift was not sealed it was him, Roman Torchwick and two females who escaped! You are not one of these females!

-These 4 people you mention entered the rift, but it didn't close immediately after they escaped. So I took the opportunity, but I dunno if some other people tried that as well

- _"Ej! Będziemy jeszcze potrzebni?"_ -one of the still hooded archers asked

-Odwoozhte wookie. To pzhyjatchele-Oro responded with his terrible accent

-Whatever he said-Neon laughed

-So, what are you searching for in Gwynbleidd?-asked Grizaj

Ciel walked up closer to the leader of those who ambushed them and showed him a photo of Von Greim and Seraphimovich taken as they were leaving some village on Solitas. Oro, upon seeing the photo, curved his lips:

-Ah, these kurvas-he said using an unknown word

-What does that mean?-asked Ciel

- _"Kurwa"_ is another word for a hooker in Gwynbleidd-said Nick-as well as the most popular insult

-That's right-said Oro-but the question that remains is why do you need to find these two?

-Well currently we're only looking for the taller guy-said Ciel-he's wanted in the entire Remnant for a prize of 6 thousand Liens

-So that's what the Huntsmen do nowadays? Hunt down criminals for money?-asked Grizaj

-Actually, none of us are going to take the prize. It's all going to the guy who let you escape from hell, since he has some personal issues to deal with him. We're just assisting him-said Neon

-Very well-said Oro-I will take you to your desired location then. But be careful, because if you hit the town, the town might sometimes hit back

-What's that supposed to mean?-asked Neon

-Chwopaki! Vratzamy! To nashi ludzye-said Oro in his terrible Gwynbleiddish

-Stop slandering my native language!-yelled Nick as the entire group followed Oro Grizaj who was quickly marching forward

Grizaj took the group through the shortest route he remembered. It didn't take long until from a far distance everyone could hear something:

-Music?-asked Penny

- _"Śpiewają. Zaraz będzie ciemno"_ -said one of the archers

-What is he saying?-asked Flynt

-It's going to be dark soon. That's why we hear music-Nick replied

-Fortunately we're pretty close-said Oro-I'll give you keys to my place, you can stay there for the night. I will go with the archers to the dance

-You...dance to that?-asked Neon, almost laughing at the fact that people were dancing in Gwynbleidd to folk music which involved no electric instrumentation

-Your ignorance is wounding me, Faunus-replied Oro

-Neon, that song is "Karanfilce". I can't believe you never heard of it-said Penny

-Uhhhhhh...no I didn't? I mean who would be dumb enough to think people would dance to it?-said Katt

Nick and William clenched their fists. The cyborg was about to raise his leg and kick the Faunus, but Nick caught him on time:

-I have a better idea-said Nick and smiled to himself

The Hexman quickly walked up to the Faunus and while everybody focused on the road he grabbed her tail:

-Nyaaaaa!-yelped Katt

Everyone suddenly stopped. Upon noticing what's happening, the archers suddenly roared with laughter:

- _"Chłopakowi się chce ciupciać!"_ -they were saying while laughing uncontrollably

-What's going on there?-asked Oro, clearly irritated

-Nothing-said Nick and awkwardly smiled-she had a rapier wasp on her tail

-Hmmmmm...let's keep going-said Grizaj

Nick and William were quietly giggling at Neon trying to keep herself together after Van Thorne grabbed her tail.

Shortly after that little incident the entire group cut through some more branches to finally land where they wanted to go:

-Welcome to Gwynbleidd-said Oro

-It's...-Neon stuttered

-Really...-said Ciel

-Sensational!-Penny jumped from joy

Gwynbleidd was a sight you could only dream of when you were a citizen of a kingdom of Mistral or Atlas. It was placed on a meadow, surrounded from all sides by a coniferous forest and only the river Tinsel showing the path out of it. However, it's not like anyone in Gwynbleidd would dream of leaving.

There are people who claim that Menagerie is not a good land for Faunus. That they didn't choose to be there, that humans are racist and isolated them out of their own hatred. Well, Gwynbleidd's people can say something similar. They were forced to isolate themselves and even after the danger was no more, they chose to stay hidden. Long ago, when the Great War was almost at hand, some people who fled from the terror of Mantle and Mistral weren't satisfied with what Vacuo and Vale had as well. Mostly because one alliance was killing individuality but the counter alliance wasn't better. In their care, if you didn't name a child after a color, you were considered pro-Mantle or pro-Mistral. And if the people thought you were like that you could be sure that your child will be a victim of bullying, your house will be devastated and you probably killed. Some people just couldn't take it and left the kingdoms forever. They took their individuality with them deep into the coniferous forest nobody dared to enter and thus they created Gwynbleidd, a place of safety and happiness. A long isolation caused them to speak completely different languages only they understand. That's why it was an asylum for Hexmen...well, it used to be.

Upon seeing their home again, William and Nick were smiling very widely, watching as in front of them people dance barefoot on the streets, some had instruments and almost everybody was singing. Neon still couldn't get over that music so she just covered her ears:

-It's beautiful-said Flynt

-Hasn't aged a bit!-said Nick

-So you guys...-said Oro, approached the group and gently put Neon's hands away from her ears. The archers were already running towards the crowd of singing people

-Yes?-asked William

-Are you gonna hang out around here or do you want to settle in my place already?

-I'd like to play along with these people. That melody is very intriguing-said Flynt and took out his trumpet

-Then you're definitely going to need this-said Oro and gave Flynt a book titled "Dictionary"

-Well...I'd like to go to your apartment-said Ciel-I need to think of our next move

-Here are the keys-said Grizaj and gave Ciel the keys

-I'll be at the local watering station-said Will

-You mean liquor store?-said Oro and smiled

-Precisely!-cheered William

-And you two?

-I've kinda wanted to visit a shop before I settle down-said Nick

-Oh yes, shopping is a definite yes from me!-said Neon

-And you?

-I'm quite eager to participate in this unknown to me form of dance-said Penny

-Well...in that case, follow me-said Oro

-I'll see you back at the...safe house, I guess?-said Ciel and walked away

Soon the rest split up and went where they planned to go. Nick was leading Neon to a shop he had in mind when suddenly he felt pain in his butt:

-Ow!-he yelled

-I'm sorry, you had a wasp there-said Neon sarcastically and smiled widely

-You're so...violent-Nick yelped

-At least now we're even-said the Faunus and got awkwardly close to Nick's ear-besides...if we were somewhere more private I would claim that a...

-Aaaaaaaay, there's that store!-Nick interrupted Neon. She looked at the name of it

-Hexagon, huh? Well it sounds like something you'd be familiar with. I'll wait for you here-she said

-Don't go anywhere-said Nick-I'll be right back

The Hexman opened the door to the shop. A small bell immediately let out the sound of him entering:

- _"Oy vey!"_ -some voice groaned from the distance

-It's nice to see nothing has changed-said Nick

Somebody slowly peeked from behind a counter in the shop:

-Oh...good evening, ma'am-said the same voice that groaned before, this time in Remnantish

-Mr. Shopkeep, is your memory giving you a hard time? Don't you recognize me?-asked Nick, a bit surprised

The person that was called out came out from behind the counter. The man Nick referred to as Mr. Shopkeep was an elderly, balding, gray-haired man with wrinkles under his eyes and over his brow. He was wearing a green shirt with a red apron and gray pants:

-By Maidens! You're...you look just like...Sihill-he said, stuttering

-You were close. I am that little guy he was always with

-Oh my!-the Shopkeep ran up to Van Thorne and shook his hand-look how big you've grown!

-You, on the other hand, stayed the same

-Hey, with my rheumatism not much can change anymore-he replied and walked back to the counter. Nick also got closer to it

-So how have you been for these past years?-asked the Hexman

-Ah, not worth mentioning, Nicholas. I ran a little Dust shop in the city of Vale, but they robbed me one night and had to go. Fortunately I managed to sell the place and open up a restaurant with noodles...speaking of which, would you like some? I have some still boiling in the wok

-Well, I would, but it'd be kind of unsettling since I'm not alone, you know?-said Nick

-Oh I see. A girl?-asked the Shopkeep and smiled. Nick was a bit disturbed by that because some of his teeth were missing and it was really showing. But, because what he lacked in teeth compensated with his personality, Nick decided to keep quiet

-Yeah, a girl. She said she'll wait by the shop-said the Hexman

-Well then ask her to come in! There's enough noodles for the three of us!-the Shopkeep cheered

-Okay, one second

Nick walked out of the shop...only to see a strange affair happening by its entrance:

-I said let go of me!-Neon yelled as some guy was grabbing her by the wrist

- _"Ale niech się panienka tak nie rzuca! Przecie widać jak panience zimno._ _Ja mogę rozgrzać..."_ -some guy who was assaulting the Faunus girl was saying

There were actually three guys who surrounded Neon. They were all dressed up in simple villager clothes and looked really gross, like people who clearly spent the last week in a bathtub full of vodka. Their noses were red, skin was wrinkled everywhere, not to mention how their stench was violating Neon's nostrils. She was currently held by her wrist by one of the attackers, while another one was examining her from behind. The third guy was leaning against the shop's front wall:

- _"Ty patrz. Co to jej z dupy wystaje?_ _Ogon to czy jak?"_ -the attacker who was behind Neon said

- _"To pewnie jedna z tych zabawek z dzielnicy zachodniej. Czyli nie tylko panienka chodzi w takiej spódnicy, że na szczyla za krótka by była, ale jeszcze do tego chodzi z czymś w dupie! Może powinniśmy zastąpić to różowe coś naszym różowym czymś?"_ -said another one of these attackers and laughed like an idiot.

Nick now got the entire picture of what was happening. These three men were sexually harassing Neon because of her clothing. Van Thorne's eyes menacingly flashed. He clenched his fists, gritted his teeth and walked up closer the affair:

-Hey-he said- _"Powiedziała wam nie"_

- _"A ty kurwa co?! Dżentelmen jakiś w dupe jebany?!"_ -said the attacker that was leaning against the shop

- _"Zostawcie tę panią w spokoju"_ -said Nick with a very strict voice

- _"To nie jest żadna pani, tylko kurwa. Kurwy żałujesz?"_ -said the same attacker and this time he got closer to Nick and pushed him

Van Thorne didn't seem to be bothered. The last thing the attacker saw before hitting the ground painfully was the gleam from Nick's eyes and his fist hitting him in the jaw. The other two attackers shivered a bit but didn't leave Neon alone. One of them was still holding her by the wrist while the other one put a knife against her neck:

- _"Ta pani jest zajęta. Puśćcie ją, póki jeszcze macie coś między nogami"_ -said Nick yet again with that strict voice

- _"Ha! To źle sobie wybrałeś kobietę, frajerze!"_ -said the one who was holding the knife

- _"Jeszcze raz mnie obrazicie i będziemy się gniewać"_ -Nick responded and his eyes flashed brighter

- _"Blefuje, nic nam nie zrobi"_ -said the attacker who held Neon by the wrist

At that moment, Nick got pissed off. He stretched his hand and his sword started to unfold in his hand. With that he was slowly walking towards the people who assaulted Neon:

- _"Jestem Hexmanem, skurwysynu. Moje życie ma tylko jeden sens-zniszczyć Grimm raz na zawsze. Ale ludzie zapominają że to przez nich, przez ich grzechy, jesteśmy ofiarami w tej wojnie, nie myśliwymi. Ludzie zapominają, że przez takich ćwierćmózgów jak ty, którzy napadają kobietę w tak miły wieczór w tak przyjaznym miejscu jak to, Grimm zaczynają nas wywęszać. To już ja bardziej się różnię od tych potworów. Ludzie tacy jak ty sprowadzają zagładę niewinnych. I dlatego was powinno się kastrować. Z chęcią to zrobię gdy już pozbawię cię tych plugawych łapsk, które postanowiły że naruszą godne szacunku ciało tej pani"_ -he was saying his monologue as he was coming at the two attackers with his sword

-Whatever you said-mumbled Neon

- _"Ej, chwila! Na pewno możemy się dogadać jakoś!"_ -the attacker let go of Neon's wrist. He was now getting scared. And he couldn't hide it anymore when Nick stood right in front of him. Turns out, he was a lot taller and much more intimidating than him:

- _"Za późno"_ -said Nick- _"Już ja cię nauczę szacunku dla kobiety"_

- _"Ludzie uciekajta, Diaboł!_ -the other attacker was screaming as he was letting go of Neon's tail and running away so fast Nick could almost feel the dirt he was leaving behind.

The other attacker didn't have this much luck. Van Thorne grabbed him by the fringe of his shirt and rapidly pulled it, making the villager face hug the ground. After that he took out his sword:

-Nick, wait!-said Neon, trying to stop him

-Trust me on that-said Nick and grabbed his sword by the blade. He walked up to the offender who was trying to get up from the ground and suddenly started to smack him on the buttocks repeatedly with the hilt of his sword. The villager actually started crying. Neon was just looking with mouth widely opened. When, at last, Nick stopped his terrible punishment, the villager ran away interrupted by jumps:

- _"Mamusiu!"_ -he was weeping as he was leaving dirt behind him

Satisfied Nick hid his sword and walked up to Neon:

-You alright?-he asked

-Yeah, I'm...I'm fine-replied Neon still slightly shocked about what she just witnessed

-You know, back at Domgard you didn't have any problems with keeping the Geist busy. Why did these guys pose a threat to you?-asked Nick

-Nah, I just...I wanted to like you for something

-Really? And...did you have any luck?

-Well, let's just say that...you surprised me

-You actually think someone who knows how to treat a lady is a surprising sight?

-Maybe a little bit...

After that Neon and Nick suddenly got close to each other. Waaaaay too close. But something broke that strange moment of trance the Hexman and the Faunus had:

-Hey! The noodles are getting cold! You gonna eat or what?-asked the Shopkeep who stuck his head out through the doors

-Noodles?

-Oh yeah, Neon. Before we head back to Ciel I thought we could grab a bite. I mean you must be starving

-And what about others?-asked Neon

-Are you opened tomorrow?-Nick turned to Shopkeep

-Of course!-responded the old guy

-Good. Save some noodles for uhhhhh...four more people-said Nick

-You got it! Now come inside, which sauce do you prefer? Mild, spicy or Szechuan?

-What is Szechuan?-asked Nick and Neon at the same time, utterly confused

-An experimental sauce some guy from Western District brought me a couple of days ago. He was really persistent-said Shopkeep

-Why are you saying he was from the West?-asked Nick

-He spoke the language we speak at the moment-said Shopkeep-also, I don't know where he could be now, I never saw him again

At that moment Nick, Neon and the Shopkeep noticed a huge green light to their left letting out a weird sound. But then, in a few short seconds it suddenly disappeared:

- _"Ej co jest kurwa?! Co to za jaki glut zielony? I gdzie ten stary z dzieciakiem?"_ -some people in the distance were loudly talking to each other

-What was that?-asked Neon

-Whatever it was, it disappeared. Let's have these noodles, shall we? We'll take the mild sauce-said Nick and walked with Neon into Hexagon

Some time later Nick and Neon left the shop. The sun was about to slowly hide behind the horizon. Nick felt okay, but Neon was even paler than usual and her facial expression and her hands on her stomach suggested something's wrong:

-I really shouldn't have tried the Szechuan sauce-said Neon-it's like eating a rainbow

-You look like you just ate a rainbow-Nick said while he was putting his hands on Neon's shoulders

-I'm really not feeling alright

-Are you going to throw up?

-Uh huh

-That's okay. In Gwynbleidd, a lot of people barf every Friday

Soon Neon's face went green and Nick took her by the hand somewhere where nobody could see them. When Neon threw up, she scattered everything she barfed across the grass and the wall of some wooden building she was leaning on:

-You okay now?-asked Nick after a while, letting the Faunus girl take a deep breath after this accident

-My stomach is still tingling-said Neon

-Well...I think I found a solution to that problem

After these words Nick gently dragged Neon to the front of the building. It was a wooden house, but a lot bigger than villagers' homes the Faunus girl could see as she and Nick were heading towards Hexagon. It also looked much fancier, the windows were much cleaner and there was a sign right above the door that said:

-K...ko...n-Neon was struggling with reading the sign

- _"Końska Rzyć"_ -Nick interrupted her-that means "Horse's Ass". It's an inn

-An inn...named like that?

-Hey, every inn needs a juvenile name. Otherwise it won't be memorable

-I mean...it just doesn't convince me to get inside. I mean if they live up to their name, how? Do they serve horseflesh dishes or does it just smell really bad in there?

-Jeez, Neon. You're asking way too many questions-said Nick as he was proceeding to open the inn's door-oh by the way they only serve horseflesh on weekends. But now that you mention eating, I could really eat a bowl of _"Czernina"_ when I think about it

-What's a c..cz..

-Too. Many. Questions. Come on inside

Nick held the door for Neon to enter the inn. As the Faunus girl entered and heard the door shutting she was absolutely bombarded with the vibrant atmosphere inside. She could hear a lot of incredibly happy and drunk voices, warmth of a fireplace somewhere, the smell of spruce wood mixed with a mixture of flavors coming from the kitchen. She could see people sitting around wooden tables, their seats decorated with an unknown animal's fur for more comfort. But what was most noticeable for Neon was the floor trembling from the music coming from somewhere around the fireplace. Over there she could see a band consisting of three stunningly beautiful women and three elegantly bearded men, each playing a strange instrument Neon never seen in her life before. The three women were singing some song in Gwynbleiddish but Katt didn't understand a word. Nick, on the other hand, immediately got excited:

-Ooooooh, they are playing _"Sargon"_. Wait, I recognize these chants...no...unbelievable! Neon, sit on that bench over there, when the innkeeper approaches you say this: _"Flaszka nalewki z dzikiej róży, butelka miodu i miska czerniny"_

-What does that mean?! Hey, where are you going?!

-I absolutely MUST talk to this band! I'm a huge fan

-But what if...

-Stop asking so many questions! We're in one of the friendliest spaces on Remnant! Be right back

The band just finished playing the song Nick called Sargon. Neon kept following Nick with her eyes as she was sitting by the wooden table on a white fur decoration. She then got a better look at the bizarre band that was playing in that inn.

The three women were hierarchically sitting on the table of the bench by the fireplace from the shortest to the tallest. They all had long hair but differed a lot from each other.

The shortest woman had blonde hair and was very curvy. Out of jealousy, Neon looked down on her top and frowned for a moment. Her cheeks seemed like they're blushing all the time and she looked smug as hell. She was wearing a red shirt and over it a robe in some dirty shade of white with red stitches forming strange symbols everywhere. She also had a silver medallion around her neck but it wasn't a Hexman amulet.

The medium height woman was giving Neon chills. Despite the fact that she was also very pretty with her hair in a dark shade between ginger and cherry red, her complexion was very pale and, unlike the short blonde, she didn't have curves that would make Neon as jealous as the blonde did. She was sitting next to the blonde with a violin in her hands and seemed to express no emotion whatsoever. She was wearing an amber robe and a pale brown woolen jacket over it. She also had some kind of talisman around her neck but it was more colorful. At some point Neon felt her eyes on her and got stunned for a moment.

The tallest woman was actually barely taller than the creepy cherry haired lady. It was a brunette of a slightly less pale complexion with almost no curves whatsoever. But out of all the three she looked the friendliest. She wasn't sitting with the other two women, instead she was on the bench with an instrument that looked like the piano in front of her. She was wearing a dark red lipstick, almost in the same shade as the creepy woman's hair. She was wearing a black dress with fur around the collar. Out of all the members of the band, Neon could only see her shoes, which were bovver boots. "Now I know who could've inspired Nick's fashion taste" the Faunus girl thought to herself.

Next to the brunette girl sat a guy with a beard and a moustache which wasn't connected to it. He had short brown hair and a little pigtail sticking out of the right side of his head. He had a very piercing look in his eyes. He was wearing a green tunic and holding a mandolin in hands. The other two guys had black robes with hoods over their heads but they were definitely guys, because Neon could see their facial hair under those hoods. One guy had a small drum on his lap and a weirdly shaped single drumstick while the other guy had a contrabass.

Nick approached the band and started to talk to them. They all immediately cheered up upon seeing him. Neon was getting jealous when suddenly she heard a voice next to her:

- _"Witamy. Co dla was będzie?"_ -a friendly sounding female voice sounded right above Neon

Katt looked to her right. The innkeeper was a young girl wearing an extremely short green skirt with a white apron and a black vest over it. She had bright green eyes, freckles under them and dark brown hair tied into a ponytail. She was smiling nicely at Neon:

-Uhhhhh...-Neon stuttered

- _"Nie wiem czy to akurat mamy"_ -the innkeeper laughed. Neon still had no idea what she's saying

-Ehehehehe-the Faunus girl laughed nervously. At that moment her tail waved nervously a little bit. The innkeeper noticed that:

-You're not from around here, are you?-she said fluently with no accent in Remnantish

-Did you just...-Neon's eyes grew wider

-My dad was from Vale. The name's Daisy, but the people here call me _"Marysia"_

-I'm Neon-said the Faunus girl

Right when Katt wanted to try to tell the girl who introduced herself as Daisy what Nick asked her to order, the curvy blonde woman from the band suddenly yelled to everyone in the inn:

- _"Słuchajcie! Dzisiaj gramy specjalny utwór z okazji powrotu naszego dalekiego przyjaciela. Wznosimy za niego toast, bowiem dzisiaj razem zagramy Paslę! Jebać Grafa!"_ -she yelled

Neon then noticed Nick. He was sitting next to the guy with the mandolin with a guitar. The blonde woman also took a tambourine from somewhere:

-Oooooh, I haven't heard this song in forever-said Daisy and sat next to Neon, clearly excited

Everyone in the inn was cheering, clapping their hands and whistling. Nick grabbed the guitar tighter and started the song with a few chords. Then the other guys joined with their instruments and lastly the brunette, the creepy woman and the blondie joined in with their instruments. After some instrumental play everyone started to slowly wave in their seats. Daisy put her arm around Neon and did the same, pulling the Faunus girl with her. Shortly after that the blondie and the brunette started singing:

-Pasla dievka lebedi, po zieleni levadi...

-Oy dolesh moja, desh ty z vodoyu da poplyvla!-everyone suddenly roared in the inn with drunken voices, singing along with the creepy cherry haired woman

-Oy ty dole vsim ne myla, chom ty mene ne vtopyla...

-Oy dolesh moja, desh ty z vodoyu da poplyvla!

-Yak ne bachu girko plachu, lita svoyi marnotrachu...

-Oy dolesh moja, desh ty z vodoyu da poplyvla!

-Lutshe bulo utopytys, chem z mylenkym rozluchytis...

-Oy dolesh moja, desh ty z vodoyu da poplyvla!

Neon found the song pretty slow for her tastes, but it was kind of bearable. In the middle of the song, Daisy got out of her trance and got up from the bench:

-So, what would you like to order?-she asked, trying to sound clear in all the noise

-I forgot-said Neon-you could ask my friend over there. He's playing the guitar

-Okay, I'll ask your boyfriend-said Daisy and smiled

-He's not my...-Neon was trying to say but Daisy was already too far, quickly approaching Van Thorne

Katt awkwardly looked as Daisy talks to Nick and he stops playing for a short time and whispers into the innkeeper's ear what he wanted to order. Once Daisy nodded and disappeared behind the door to the inn's backroom, the Hexman took the guitar back in his hands and finished the song with the band. When the last chord silenced, the guests of the inn roared with joy while the band just slightly nodded on their positions. Shortly after that Nick put the guitar away, talked a little bit more to the band and came back to the table he shared with Neon:

-I see the cultural shock has really gotten into you-he said, widely grinning

-It actually did, but...I'm starting to enjoy it, shockingly-Neon replied

-I knew that sooner or later you're going to like it. And how's your stomach?

-Still tingling, but it's not unbearable

-Once _"Marysia"_ comes back with our order you're surely going to feel better

Nick and Neon spent 10 minutes like that talking about anything they could think of. In the meantime, the band by the fireplace was resting before the next song. Soon Daisy came with a wooden tray in her hand and placed all that was on it on the table. Nick got a small black bowl with steaming, dark brown soup and a brown glass bottle with a cork instead of a bottle cap, while Neon got a flask filled with some amber liquid and a small shot glass:

-Oooooh yes, I missed that a lot!-said Nick as he was grabbing a wooden spoon next to his bowl and started to eat

-What's that?-asked Neon

-It's _"Czernina"_ , I told you about it

-Nope, nothing at all

-Well...the best way to find out would be to give it a taste

-Ummmm...no thanks. I can still feel that accursed Szechuan sauce

-Then take a shot of what you got, it'll make you feel better immediately

-And what exactly did I get?

-It's an alcoholic beverage made of wild rose fruits

Neon then let out a giggle and looked seductively at Nick. He was confused with his soup dripping from his spoon:

-Are you trying to make me feel better or make me drunk?-she asked

-Both would be good if I'm honest-said Nick with a hidden irony-it might be alcohol, but it's actually a part of Gwynbleiddean medicine. I bet even Qrow would kill to be treated like that

-Okay, okay. I'll try some of it

Neon opened the flask she had and poured some of the alcohol to the shot glass. She drank it at one go and immediately frowned. She also started coughing a little bit:

-It burns-she said

-What did you expect?-laughed Nick

After a short time Neon pulled herself together from the burning sensation of the alcoholic beverage, but she felt odd as well. The tingling in her stomach was fading, the Szechuan sauce's taste was also making way for the burning sensation of the drink. However, once it went away, Neon's throat felt sore:

-Hey, could I try your soup?-asked the Faunus girl

-Sure, it's nothing strange since you just drank a shot of a beverage which is pure ethanol in over 45%

Nick scooped a little bit of the soup on his spoon and passed it slowly towards Neon, as if he wanted to feed her. Again, he felt like a babysitter. When Neon finally got a taste of what Van Thorne was eating she seemed a bit confused:

-It tastes...sweet, but sour at the same time-she said

-That was the idea-replied Nick

-How is this soup made actually?

-Well, you take a clear poultry broth, mix it with sugar and vinegar (though there are a lot of substitute products) and then you add the very core element of the soup

-Which is?

-Duck's blood

Neon's eyes almost popped out of their eye sockets:

-Are you kidding me?!-she almost yelled

-What?

Katt grabbed the flask of alcohol she had, opened it and took a big sip directly from it, frowning even more:

-Oh, okay. You're vegan...I see-said Nick

-I'm not vegan-replied Neon-but I think there should be some borders

After that sip from her flask she was just sitting there with the beverage slowly getting into her head. In the meantime, Nick was slowly and quietly eating his blood soup. At some point Neon noticed he has a bottle of something that looked like an alcohol as well. At first she didn't want to know what it is. "What if it's some kind of moonshine made out of a pig or something?" she thought. But curiosity killed a cat in this case and she didn't manage to hold back (she was also feeling a lot less sober at that time):

-What's that you have?-asked the Faunus and pointed at the bottle next to Nick

-That's mead-said Van Thorne quickly

-Another alcoholic beverage?

-Yes

-Made out of pig?

-What?! No no no, it wouldn't be possible. You make mead out of fermented honey wort, usually it's lime honey

-Awwww please, refrain yourself from calling me "honey"-Neon giggled and blushed. She was clearly very drunk

-That's not what I...

-Hey!-the blonde woman from the band suddenly called Nick, waving her hand at him- _"zagrasz z nami jeszcze jedną piosenkę, Nick?"_

- _"Jasne. Dajcie mi tylko chwilkę na skończenie czerniny. Co gramy?"_ -Nick replied

- _"Rosa"_ -replied the brunette

After that Nick started to eat his soup a little faster:

-I assume they invited you for another song?-asked Neon

-Would you look at that? Faunus outsider learning the language of Gwynbleidd-said Nick and smiled once he finished the soup

-The fuck you mean?! Hey, where are you...oh right

Nick got up from the bench and took the bottle of mead with him as he was walking towards the band. Neon was alone again. And this time Daisy couldn't be seen in her area. But at least...she had her flask.

But soon the flask was empty. Neon was now wobbling a bit on her seat, but somehow pulled herself together. The song "Rosa" was very chilling and atmospheric and the three female vocalists, instead of sounding like raging Valkyries, had actually relaxing voices. Halfway through the song, Neon felt someone tugging gently on her skirt. She looked to her right to see a little child, a girl, probably of a kindergartner age. She had bright ashen hair tied into cute pigtails and small emerald eyes. She was carrying something in her hands, smiling at Neon politely. The Faunus girl thought she's going to die of cuteness overload at that moment because the little girl even had a floral wreath on her head:

- _"Proszę"_ -she said in a polite tone and stretched her hands in Neon's direction. Katt could now see what the girl was carrying. It was another floral wreath but made of pink, blue, violet and orange flowers with a bright green thin flower stem tying them all together in a circular shape. Neon smiled widely and removed the hairbands she had, getting rid of the ponytails and instead showing the kid in front of her how her loose hair looked like. The girl was just looking at Neon with an adorable smile. After Katt made her hair loose, she gently took the wreath from the child and put it on her head. The kid, upon seeing that, giggled happily and ran off somewhere. Neon couldn't locate her after that.

"Rosa" was coming to an end. The ending sounded like a lullaby. Neon was starting to get used to the culture of the village she landed in. But it still was quite shocking to see no bullheads, airships, no modern clothes and no scrolls. And that language...Neon still found it very hard to learn. She was sitting like that with the floral wreath on her head until Nick returned from playing the song with the band. But then he noticed the wreath on Neon's head and his eyes went wide. He was out of mead as he was drinking it while playing with the band:

-Neon...what is this? On your head?-he asked. He seemed a bit terrified

-Oh that? It's a floral wreath. A little girl just walked up and gave it to me. Looks good on my hair, doesn't it?

-That's not it, Neon. That child could've been a matrimonial agent. If you don't take this wreath off right now, everyone's going to think we're...

- _"Ej no, Nickuś! Co nie mówisz że ze swoją kobietą jesteś?! Nie idźcie do domu jeszcze, ludzie dobrzy! Mamy wesele do rozegrania! Wszyscy gramy Lazare, niechaj ściany gospody drżą!"_ -yelled the creepy cherry haired woman. Her appearance softened, probably because there was an empty pint next to her

Slightly scared, Neon and Nick felt as the crowd of the inn suddenly surrounds them and as they lift them both up in the air:

-Whoa!-Neon seemed to enjoy this surfing on the crowd's hands

-Oy Lazare, Lazare, tuka ni sa kazali. Tervo tuka doydome, moma momche naydome. Ya momata godete, ya momcheto zhenete!-the crowd was singing along with the band, who was now singing entirely as a choir. The three women were again like Valkyries and everybody's feet were rhythmically stomping on the ground, making the inn feel...shaky.

-What have you done?!-yelled Nick to Neon who was a little bit further away on the crowd's hands. Neon suddenly saw as the little girl who gave her the unlucky wreath and some unknown to her little boy are doing something with Nick's hair. After a while she realized that they're tying it into pigtails. Nick clearly didn't like the situation he was in, but that didn't stop Neon from letting out an incredibly cute giggle:

-What have I done?!-she yelled once she finally stopped laughing

-You made them think we're married! Now they're throwing us a reception and we won't leave this place until dawn!

Neon's mouth opened wide. "Me and Nick?! Together?! But...that's way too early!" she was thinking. But soon something started to overcome Neon's shock. In the meantime, the band sang the next verse with the crowd:

-Raduvay se, raduvay, raduvay se, domaki ne. Kolko liste po gorach, tolko zdrave na taz kyshcha!-everyone seemed to be particularly happy about singing this part of the song

-Oh nooooooo...-Nick groaned as the crowd's hands were leading him straight at Neon. His hair was now braided and the two kids even tied little ribbons on each of the pigtails. Neon giggled even louder

-What's the matter?! This is so much fun!-yelled the Faunus girl, relaxing a bit on the crowd's hands

-It's not! We're halfway through "Lazare". Usually when they finish that verse, the couple has to kiss in front of everybody!

-Then what are we waiting for?!-Neon suddenly got excited and gave the people who were lifting her up a sign to lead her at Nick

-Neon, don't...Neon, stop it...stop it...stop!-Nick was trying to resist but it was too late. The crowd led Neon right into his arms and when she was close enough she brutally smooched the Hexman's lips. It seemed as if they both were glued to each other. Nick was terrified. His eyes were slowly filling up with tears. "I'm sorry, Yang. Yet again, I proved to be too weak" he thought to himself...before he finally stopped resisting.

Meanwhile, at Oro Grizaj's apartment. Penny and Ciel were sitting in the living room on the carpet near a fireplace. Oro was lying on one sofa, Flynt was leaning against a wall playing his trumpet, while on the other sofa four other people were sitting.

It was a group of four boys. They looked like they were around Flynt's age. The farthest from the fireplace sat a guy who had burnt-orange hair that was combed backwards with a slight peak at the front, and indigo eyes. He was wearing a silver-gray armor with gold trim. The chest plate was sporting a bird with its wings outstretched. Underneath the armor, he was wearing a black shirt with red trimmings and black pants with a red belt tied around his waist. He was also very tall, at least a head above the rest of the guys he was sitting with.

Next to him sat a slim boy of average height. His head was shaved with a light-green mohawk on the top of it. He was wearing a hoodie with the sleeves cut off and two bracers on his arms extending from the wrist to just below the elbow. Beneath it he was wearing a pale-green, long-sleeved shirt, along with a brown strap around his chest holding a spiked spaulder to his left shoulder and dark-grey pants. His boots seemed to be made of a thick brown material and were going up to his knees.

The third person was a boy with light-brown hair that was combed to the left. He kept his eyes nearly closed at a very noticeable squint. He was wearing a tan-colored armor with a belt along with vambraces on his arms that were the same color as the rest of his armor. Underneath it he was wearing a black shirt and black pants along with a black scarf around his neck.

The last guy had blue eyes and long, combed back, dark blue hair. He was wearing a dark grey armor with light gray edges as well as vambraces of the same style. Underneath that armor he was wearing a black, long-sleeved V-neck shirt and black pants.

These 4 boys were sitting silently on the sofa, talking to Oro, who was listening while nonchalantly relaxing on his separate sofa:

-So when are the remaining two coming back?-asked the tallest guy

-You appear to be impatient, Cardin-said Penny, who suddenly appeared next to him

-Gah!-the man she called Cardin groaned-will you stop scaring me like that?!

-Seems to me like you still didn't get over your loss at Vytal-said Ciel and smiled sneeringly

-Pfffft-snorted the guy with the mohawk-it wasn't that important anyway

-Mhm, sure...-Flynt slowly said from where he was standing and smiled sneeringly

-Actually, I'd have to agree with Russel on that-Grizaj said from his sofa-once you learn about Gwynbleidd's culture, no Vale or Vytal can live up to it

-Dammit Sky, can you not touch my ass for at least five minutes?!-yelled suddenly the guy with nearly closed eyes

-But I'm cold-groaned the guy with blue hair

-Then sit by the fireplace!-the brown haired guy said, irritated

-But there's that...mean lady there...-said Sky as quietly as he could

-Dove, can you please MAKE this guy stop calling me a mean lady? It's irritating, I have an actual name-whined Ciel

At that moment everyone in the apartment heard some voices coming from outside. They were getting louder as they were getting closer. It sounded like horrible, drunken vocals. Oro immediately got up from his sofa:

-What the hell is that noise?! It's past 2 A.M., dammit!-he said angrily and walked up to the front door.

Upon opening the door he could already see two shapes nearby. The nearly passed out Neon was wobbling in Nick's arms (who wasn't quite sober himself) as he was trying to keep her together. The Hexman's hair was still braided in two girly pigtails while the Faunus girl was wearing her wreath on one of her ponytails, which was very messy (just like the rest of her hair):

- _"Z innym zatańczę gdy, z tą Kryśką będziesz ty, a potem czemu nie, niech inny mą bluzkę zmnie!"_ -Neon was horribly singing fluently in very drunken Gwynbleiddish

-" _Laj laj laj laj la laj, naj naj naj naj na naj, na na na naj na naj, na na na na na na na naj naj naj"_ -now both she and Nick were humming words that didn't mean anything

-Can y'all just shut the fuck up?! I'm trying to sleep here!-yelled William, while sticking out his head from the window on the upper floor of the apartment. He was sleeping in a separate guest room after he drank too much at the liquor store and got kicked out for starting a fight with some old guy who was trying to steal his bottle

Neon and Nick just giggled and got quieter. Oro just looked at them, clearly a bit disappointed. Once they were right over the doorstep he turned back to the rest:

-Two more Williams. We're going to have to discuss team CRDL's intel tomorrow-he said

-Fuck you, Grizaj!-yelled William from upstairs

-You're all just a bunch of overgrown kids-sighed Ciel as she was shaking her head by the fireplace

-And that includes you-said Flynt

Meanwhile, Nick and Neon were rushing upstairs where Oro Grizaj's rooms for guests were. They opened a random door and, while furiously making out they got inside and dropped on the bed:

-I guess you could call it our wedding night-said the Faunus girl as she was covering Nick in kisses

-Stop with this wedding stuff. Let's just get this night over with-said Nick...and suddenly felt a hand unzipping his pants. He responded with his hand slowly going for the buckle of Neon's belt while caressing her thigh and the tail beforehand.

For a little more, Oro Grizaj was awkwardly sitting with team CRDL, Ciel, Flynt and Penny in the living room. But at some point he got up, feeling quite sleepy:

-Alright, team CRDL will take the two sofas. Soleil, Polendina and Coal go upstairs and I go to my sleeping room-he said and quickly proceeded upstairs

Shortly after that Ciel, Penny and Flynt also approached the staircase. Before they climbed the stairs, however, the synth girl gave team CRDL a last look:

-Have an uninterrupted sleep, guys. It's been...good to see you again-she said

-As much as I hate saying it...pleasure's been all mine-said Cardin

- _"Gdy rozum śpi budzą się upiory..."_ -Flynt was quietly chanting a song he learned as the three were climbing up the stairs

-Oh quit showing off-said Ciel, clearly not liking what Flynt was singing (despite the language barrier)

At some point they passed a door from behind which they could hear...something happening. Flynt and Ciel didn't seem interested at first but then they heard that Penny isn't moving. When they turned around, Ciel almost screamed in anger at the synth.

Penny was crouching by the door and observing through the keyhole. She was clearly intrigued about what was happening on the other side of the door. Flynt managed to cover Soleil's mouth on time and slowly approached Penny. Once he did, Ciel calmed down:

-What are you watching?-Flynt asked to keep Polendina away from peeping through that keyhole

-Strange-Penny said-Nicholas seems to be mistaking the holes on Neon's body, yet she doesn't look...dissatisfied

Upon hearing that Ciel wanted to scream even more. Instead she bit her tongue and pushed Penny away from the keyhole:

-You better let me see it!-she said

-That doesn't sound good-said Flynt

-It would appear that Ciel is expressing a form of jealousy-said Penny with a strange cheer in her voice

-I am not jealous! Why would I?! Do I look like someone who would lust after a...penis?!-that last word Ciel said a bit louder

-You like him! You're totally into him-Flynt quietly laughed

-You probably wish it could've been you at the moment instead of Neon!-laughed Penny

-Both of you, shut the fuck up!-Ciel blushed and almost yelled. She was nervously grabbing the edges of her skirt

-If you wish for a war, so be it-Penny suddenly said out of the blue and got strangely close to Soleil. Her presence seemed menacing

-Hey girls-said Flynt-just let them be for this night. I'm starting to get sleepy

Penny stopped being so menacing and nodded. After that she and the other two people slowly snuck away from the room Nick and Neon were having sex in.

Soon everyone was in bed. Nick and Neon were just finishing their thing, and in the meantime Flynt, Ciel and Penny laid in three separate beds in their room. There was also a fourth bed, but none of them thought Neon would come to sleep there:

-Hey Flynt, are you sleeping?-said Ciel

-No? Not yet at least-replied Coal

-Good, good...now tell me, you were seeing the sights longer than me. What's the place you'd take out a girl for a romantic walk?

-You know that river around here, I believe it was called "The Tinsel"? Well, the place is pretty clean and there are fireflies around there around the evening. Also, if you're planning to get real, the place has pavements, a bridge between the river banks and some standing lanterns just in case the fireflies decide not to come

-Okay, well...that will let me tell Van Thorne the important stuff I needed to tell him

-Like the fact that you like him?-Penny suddenly turned to Flynt and Ciel and said that

-Oh please, don't get any clues, Penny. Nick is completely not my type. Thinking that I could have feelings for a boy with glorious long hair, gorgeous green eyes, weakening smile and an ass that could be mistaken for a feminine one is...absolutely preposterous...-said Ciel nervously smiling

Flynt snickered, almost bursting into laughter. Penny also grinned widely upon hearing this ridiculous argument from Ciel.

Suddenly the door to the room opened. To everyone's surprise, it was Neon who was standing there. She seemed relaxed and ready to sleep:

-Must...hug...the pillow-she mumbled. After that she slowly crawled up to the empty bed next to Penny and dropped like a ragdoll on the mattress

But the synth wasn't going to let the Faunus immediately fall asleep. She turned to Neon along with Flynt and Ciel and her grin got even wider:

-So, dear bride...-Penny said with a supposedly innocent tone

-Stop it...-the Faunus just mumbled

-No, I'm just wondering. I never heard of this kind of sexual activity you and Nick were performing-said Penny

Neon raised her head and looked at Penny as if she wanted to kill her:

-Let me tell you one thing, tin can. Even you wouldn't be capable of comprehending what Nick can do in bed-she said

-And what exactly can he do?-asked Ciel. She was inappropriately curious

-Why are you so curious? Look, if you want to date him yourself, feel free to do so. No matter what you, me or Penny try to do to him he'll never have strong feelings for us-said the Faunus

-What makes you say that?-asked Ciel

-If he and I really had something, do you think I'd come to sleep here?-asked Neon

-Well...-Flynt was about to say something

-Exactly. Now let me sleep. I still feel a burning sensation after what we were doing

After these words Neon's head hit the pillow and this time she was snoring to convince others she's asleep. Others soon fell asleep as well, Ciel was the last one to do so. The fact that she's not going to have an actual boyfriend was making her a bit upset.

At the same time Nick was lying in his bed in a separate room. His head was on the pillow but he was looking with nostalgia through the window of his room at what was once his home.

The fortress of Hexmen was entirely soaked in darkness, despite the fact that it was from red brick. Towers were slowly getting covered by ivy and the walls needed renovation. However, what caught Nick's attention and caused him to stay vigilant that night for a while, was a light in the middle tower in the chamber on its last floor. That's where the Grandmaster used to have his office...and also this was where his family and office lived.

All the memories were coming back to Nick now that he was back at his home village. He remembered the interior of his and his parents' chambers. He had a bed right by the window, so that he could watch the stars and the "cruel world" beyond the coniferous forest before he went to sleep. He also remembered his father's desk, where he learned to write and read. "Now, now, don't empty the inkwell too fast, Nicky" was what Sihill used to say every time Nick's letter was written too thick. He remembered a small fireplace right in front of his bed (which could also be turned into a comfortable sofa), which he sometimes stared into, wondering how the outside world looks like. He remembered a piano he used to play with his mother, it was the first instrument he learned to play. "Nicky, remember to treat the instrument like your own body. Respect it" was what his mother used to say if Nick was trying to be too dramatic on the piano.

Mother...who even was Nick's mother? Did he even remember her face? His memories seemed a bit foggy, but Nick remembered she had this long black storm of curly hair and green eyes. Father, on the other hand, looked almost just like him, but his hair was wavier. And, unlike Nick, he kept his moustache and a goatee. He used to sometimes say: "A man is defined by how well he treats his beard". And that is why Nick persistently shaved his face. Because he believed that the ultimate method of caring for facial hair is to shave it entirely so that it never matures. Nick wished he could stay as a child...but that was shortly after the night of Lahilla's raid.

After staring at his home Nick was about to change his position on the bed...

When suddenly he almost jumped out of his covers.

Right above his nose he noticed a human shape. It was floating and was letting out a weak light. After looking at it a little longer Nick knew it was a ghost of a woman. And the woman that showed herself right before him was:

-M...M...Mum?-Nick stuttered

The ghost just nodded and smiled. Its black curls were waving as if it was windy there:

-Welcome home, Nicky-the ghost spoke. The voice was definitely Yennefer's but it echoed and was much more fading

-I...I miss you so much...-said Nick

-I will always be by your side-Yennefer's ghost replied-but you...you cannot forget, why you keep fighting

-I remember the promise I made, mother. And I will keep it...

-Your father and I believe in you...

-Mum? Mum? Please wait! I have so many questions! Mum!

At that moment Nick woke up covered in sweat. There was no ghost and no light was on in the fortress. It was all just a dream. A dream that attacked him right after he spent the night with his so-called "wife". He then looked through the window. The dawn was almost at hand. "Good morning, mum" he thought as he saw the coniferous trees slightly bending due to a delicate breeze of air flowing through them.

A couple of minutes later Nick was already downstairs in Oro Grizaj's kitchen. The resurrected former huntsman was already there, sipping coffee. He seemed like it was his morning routine:

-Morning, Van Thorne-he greeted him

-Morning-Nick responded

-Others are still asleep-said Oro

-That's good-replied the Hexman and opened a random kitchen cabinet

-The coffee is in the cupboard under the sink

-Yeah, but I was wondering if you have any food in here. If you had enough I could make scrambled eggs out of it for all of us

-You know how the hens are in Gwynbleidd. Over 3000 eggs per week, that is some record. I only bought like 12 just to stockpile in case the inn closes early

-Perfect-said Nick-I'll get to it then

While the big portion of scrambled eggs were being made both Oro and Nick heard knocking to the door. It was rapid and sounded a bit frustrated:

-Who the hell is it so early in the morning?-said Grizaj as he was approaching the door

Nick was observing him from the kitchen but when Oro opened the door, someone barged right inside, ignoring the tall Huntsman. The visitor was wearing the brown cape with a hood and a dark green outfit and had two short swords attached to her thighs. From the look on her face, Nick recognized Daisy, the innkeeper from yesterday:

-Nicholas, I'm afraid we might have a problem-she said as she was pulling back her hood

-Wait, I didn't know you speak the common Remnantish as well-said Oro

-Not now, sir. I must speak to Van Thorne, it is urgent

-Slow down, Daisy. You're wearing a ranger outfit so you must have been scouting something, am I right?-asked Nick

-Yes, I was patrolling the entrance to the forest from the north and I noticed a group of people on horses heading here. Not just any people, though

-Who did you see?-asked Grizaj

Daisy looked at the Huntsman, clearly terrified:

- _"El Cara De Plata"_ -she said in southern Gwynbleiddean

Oro almost dropped his coffee mug. Nick didn't know exactly how to react but kind of shivered upon hearing the dialect of Gwynbleidd he hardly understood:

-Who is...the silver face?-the Hexman asked, translating what Daisy said before

-A masked tyrant who proclaimed Gwynbleidd as his property and titled himself our Marquess

-I guess he's not exactly liked then?

-We all hate him. He occupies the middle tower of the old fortress at the main plaza along with his group of shady associates and nobody knows what he's doing. Is he watching us, is he defiling the memory of the Brotherhood, is he summoning demons? It's all a secret for us

-But we all know one thing-Grizaj interrupted Daisy-when he and his Counts arrive, we all must hide

- _"Ludzie, uciekajta! Graf jedzie!"_ -someone screamed in Gwynbleiddean outdoors

-It's like a curfew then-said Nick

-I'll be able to go home once the Marquess enters the fortress-said Daisy

-That's awful! And you agree to be so terrorized by these assholes?

-We kind of don't have a choice. It's been quite a while since the Hexmen were destroyed, we've grown weaker and can't stand up to them

As Daisy was talking, Nick was looking through the window as seven masked horsemen arrive and trot across the village towards the fortress made of red brick. They were led by the man Daisy named Marquess "The Silver Face". Behind him Nick could see people in following colors. One was wearing a red cape, behind him was one in an orange one, one in a yellow cape, one in a green cape, one in a blue cape and finally one in a purple cape. All horsemen wore some kind of mask. The Marquess wore one that resembled some kind of demon with horns and a creepy grin mouth, while others had masks in...quite familiar shapes. After looking a bit closely, Nick realized that these are the symbols of Hexman schools. But he didn't recognize the guy with purple cape's mask. It was some kind of creature that looked like a lion but from the sides two bat-like wings were standing out. But he shook off the thoughts about that figure and focused on the Marquess. He then noticed one of his arms isn't really moving that much, it seemed stiff. Other than that, one of his legs was slightly crippled. And then Nick noticed a rapier attached to this guy's hip. This rapier...reminded him about who this guy could be. His fist clenched:

-Von Greim...-he said, gritting his teeth in anger

-What?-Grizaj seemed confused

-That's the real name of _"El Cara De Plata"_. Schwartz Von Greim, designation 1942, Fox school, former chamberlain and close friend of Grandmaster Sihill Vel Gwyhyr, traitor and an undercover agent of Lahilla, his sister is the current queen of Grimm. He's the guy I'm after...

- _"Skurwysyn"_ -said both Grizaj and Daisy at the same time

-Wait a second-suddenly someone else's voice could be heard in Grizaj's house. It was one of the members of team CRDL, Dove Bronzewing-do you mean to tell me the four of us were working for the guy who caused the legendary Brotherhood to be destroyed?

Nick rapidly turned at the team who was sleeping near the fireplace on the two sofas. He frowned and his eyes seemed even paler. Bronzewing shivered along with the rest of his team, who was also awake:

-You...worked for him?-the Hexman said with a very menacing voice

-Yo, don't look at us like that-said Russel-we were in a dire situation after the fall of Beacon, you know

-Oh I think I do pretty well-Nick was just getting more and more menacing

-We were just furnishing his apartment!-Sky almost cried, already scared of Nick

-Let us just state one thing clear. This guy has no place in Gwynbleidd ever since he betrayed us. You weren't furnishing his apartment, you were furnishing the chambers he stole from my father and from which he kicked me out with brute force

-What do you mean about "us"?-asked Daisy, a bit confused

Nick shoved his hand behind his t-shirt and showed everyone in the room his medallion. Grizaj, Daisy and team CRDL gasped all at the same time:

-It...can't be...-Oro said

-The prophecy has been fulfilled!-Daisy cheered

-What prophecy?-asked Nick

-Ever since Von Greim proclaimed himself our leader, the Aquarius priests have been chanting this prophecy saying that he'll die by the hand of the man who wields powers of multiple techniques. The prophecy states that the one chosen will be someone from his past, someone he never expects to still be around-Daisy explained

-Aquarius priests? I thought they were eradicated with Lahilla's raid-said Nick

-Well...from what I heard some of them managed to escape the forest that night but they came back later to help in rebuilding what we lost. They're holding a mass in the evening by the Tinsel, we could join them there-said Oro

-I'll go alone. I met fortune tellers like them before. They don't like it when others hear someone else's prophecy-said Nick

Suddenly Cardin started sniffing with his nose:

-Something's burning-he said

At that moment the expression on Nick's face immediately changed. From a serious face he immediately became frightened:

-MY SCRAMBLED EGGS!-he screamed and dashed towards the kitchen

-You gonna stay for breakfast?-Oro asked Daisy

-With pleasure-the innkeeper replied and untied her cape and carefully took off her boots

-Alright, Van Thorne! Make one extra portion!-Oro yelled to Nick

-You're lucky I saved this one!-Nick yelled back from the kitchen-tell that kid he just saved 12 chicken fetuses from becoming completely useless!

A couple of minutes later everyone was already by the table in Oro Grizaj's house, eating the scrambled eggs Nick prepared. Ciel was the only one who had a hard time eating her breakfast. Even Penny was pretending to eat with her synth mouth:

-So, Aquarius priests, huh? Haven't seen these guys in a while-said William once Nick told the rest of his companions about what he heard from Daisy and team CRDL

-More importantly-Ciel joined the conversation-how do we eliminate this escort that came with Von Greim?

-That's something I'm wondering myself-said Nick-if they associated themselves with Von Greim, they will probably be a challenge. He might be a walking piece of shit, but he's not weak

-I'm also wondering something-said Flynt-who is this "Aquarius"?

-A former demon-said Nick-he used to bring floods and droughts to the living, but one day he felt like he's doing the wrong thing and helped those he affected with his power, defying Dante in the process. That redeemed his soul and let him rest forever as a spirit at the bottom of the Tinsel...somewhere. These guys were trying to summon him for so long but he never revealed himself. Maybe he's really resting for eternity

-We'll see about that-said Ciel

-We?

-I'll go with you-Soleil said persistently-I haven't seen the sights yesterday, I need to catch up

-I'll go too-said William-I'll check out if my old shop is still in the area

-A shop?-Penny asked

-Had a fireworks store back in the day. One of the reasons I look like this today-said William

-Ouch-said Neon

-Nah, that's cool-said William-I like these babies. They kind of improve everyday life

-Looks like people return to the streets-said Daisy as she was looking through the window-we could move out pretty soon

-But the Aquarius priests gather at night, don't they?-asked Russel Thrush

-True, but...you're not going to tell me you want to spend the entire day warming up by the fireplace, right? We should definitely go to the inn, we have a concert day today!-the last words Daisy said with particular enthusiasm

-OHMAHFUCKINGODYES!-Nick and William screamed so loudly jumping out of their seats

-What?!-Neon and Flynt were confused and a bit scared of that sudden outburst

-A concert day is what Gwynbleiddeans call a certain day of the month, during which bands come to their inn and play a single show. That's the day everyone's partying particularly hard-said Grizaj

-What kind of bands?-asked Penny

-Mostly heavy metal-said Daisy

-Ewwww-Flynt groaned, disgusted

-Excuse you?-Nick looked at Coal with anger in his eyes

-It's a horrible type of music. They're all just screaming, destroying drums and pulling strings out of their guitars. You can't even dance to this type of music-said Flynt

-Hey now, I think you might be putting your trust in stereotypes too much-said Penny, laughing nervously

-Flynt come on. You liked the music from yesterday, today might not be that different-said Neon

-What band is playing?-Grizaj asked Daisy

-Piratestorm-the innkeeper replied

-Then I think Mr. Coal should come with us to the tavern and see that not all metal bands are what he claims they are-said Oro

-Ugh, fine-said Coal

-Sensational!-yelled Penny

-Can we come too?-asked Cardin

-Of course!

And so shortly after that conversation everyone left Grizaj's house and went towards the inn where Daisy worked. But when they arrived they weren't graced with a good sight.

Five guys were standing near the entrance to the inn. They seemed very sleep deprived and their instruments served them as provisional beds. Daisy immediately recognized them. It was the band that was supposed to play:

-Hey, guys! Why aren't you entering?-the innkeeper asked one of the sleeping members of the band

-Tae tavern be locked-he mumbled in response

-What?

Oro ran up to the inn's entrance and found a flyer hanging on it:

-"Closed under the order of the Council of Gwynbleidd"-he read what was written on it

-Council of Gwynbleidd me fookin' arse!-Daisy yelled in a strange way, she almost sounded like the member of the band she talked to earlier. She was clearly angry

-Aye, laddie! Tae show is cancel or nae?-asked the band's vocalist. He seemed to be slowly awakening

-Shut yer' trap, ye numpty! We're not going to let some wispy-haired, leather-faced, bawbag-eyed, huffy wee fuckbumpers cancel tae show!-Daisy yelled again. It seemed like she's getting worked up

-Then you better believe it-suddenly some voice said from above

Everybody looked up at the wooden roof of the tavern. Somebody was sitting on it. Someone who immediately boiled Daisy's blood.

This guy was tall, had shoulder-length white hair and had a strange outfit on. It was mostly a red coat, a red cape, brown boots, dark blue dress pants and black gloves. The outfit was completed with a silver wolf mask over his face. Once everyone looked up he slowly got up and jumped. He landed on his legs right behind Nicholas:

-Who is that?-asked Neon

-One of Von Greim's Counts-said Oro

-Quite perceptive of you, Huntsman-said the guy in red-but I'll have you know that not addressing the Great Marquess with his proper title means punishment

-You have no authority over us-said Daisy

-I'm afraid we do-said the guy in red-so, how is it going to be? Are you going to come quietly or do I need to stain my coat?

Nick then started to struggle with his glove. Once he took it off he threw it at the guy in red. It fell right in front of his feet:

-You better listen-said the Hexman-I propose a duel at the main plaza around midnight. If I win, you get your filthy hands off Mr. Grizaj

The strange guy in a wolf mask was having a staring contest with Nick for a short time. Van Thorne was starting to feel the tension when suddenly the guy picked up the glove from the ground:

-Very good, dark haired boy. You totally took the bait. I will battle you. But it won't be for that lousy Huntsman's life. It will be a duel to death...-after these words he threw the glove back to Nick-what is your name?

-Nicholas Van Thorne

-Perfect-replied the new opponent of the Hexman-I'm Alhambra, Count of the red wolf. I shall see you in the evening

After these words the guy who introduced himself as Alhambra jumped back at the roof of Daisy's inn and ran off towards the fortress of the Brotherhood. Nick was quite shocked with that meeting internally:

-Have you gone completely mad?!-Daisy yelled at him-this guy will slaughter you!

-I highly doubt it-said Nicholas

-Aren't you a little bit too sure?-asked Penny

-It's not about whether I am sure or not. It's about proving to Gwynbleiddeans something they should have always been 100% sure of. That they formed this town so that they could be free from any harm the Councils could've done to them. I will not allow a bunch of muscle-for-brains to terrorize those that think they are too weak to stand up to them

-That's a noble thing to do-said Grizaj-with that attitude you might have the advantage

-So...what are we going to do until that duel then?-asked Flynt

-I guess we could just go and chill by the fireplace until the evening, then we'll go to the Aquarius priests and then Nick will go kill Count Alhambra-said Ciel

After that they all headed back to Grizaj's house. The evening couldn't come quick enough. The band that was supposed to play a gig at the inn took their instruments and stayed at Hexagon's back room. While Flynt, Neon, Penny, Ciel, Grizaj and Daisy were preparing a meal in the kitchen, Nick sat down with team CRDL by the fireplace:

-So...you are team CRDL, right?-he asked

They all just nodded:

-Care to tell me your names?-asked Nick

-Cardin Winchester

-Russel Thrush

-Dove Bronzewing

-Sky Lark

-Pleasure to meet you all-Nick responded

After that there was an awkward silence in the living room, only crackling of fire and the kitchen chores could've been heard:

-You guys were Beacon students, right?-asked Nick once that silence was getting uncomfortable

-Yes-Cardin replied

-When all of this is over I promise I'll take you to Haven. A lot of former students of that school are there, they could surely feel better with you around

-That's not really a good idea-said Russel

-Why not?

-We're...not exactly liked-said Sky

-We were, as you call them, bullies-said Dove-nobody liked us but each other

-Yes-said Cardin-and they would never believe we changed if they saw us again. And I can't blame them. Our whole team did some pretty bad stuff in Beacon but now when we see what this Von Greim fellow is doing with this town, we're finally realizing our mistakes. They don't care, though. In their minds we'll still be the guys who were pulling their ears and locking them up in their lockers

-Well-said Dove-two students in particular might hold a grudge. That rabbit Faunus...

-And Jaunie boy-Cardin finished the sentence for him

Nick immediately got interested in what the leader of CRDL said:

-Jaunie boy? You mean Jaune Arc?-he asked

-Well yes-Winchester replied-do you know him?

-Unfortunately I do-the Hexman replied-he's the embodiment of everything I hate in people. Arrogant little cockroach

-Are we referring to the same person, Nick?-asked Cardin, a bit confused

-Yes we do. People don't always change for the better, Cardin. And I remember what Pyrrha told me. That he used to be this kind of guy she just wanted to grab by the hand and help him get better. Now this hand she wanted to grab...it made her cry. And it most definitely shattered her heart

-I'm sorry to hear that-said Winchester

-Don't be. She is getting better with each day. I make sure about that-said Nick and this time he smiled

-You seem to like her-said Sky, who sounded quite intrigued as if he heard the greatest gossip

-Like her? I love her-Nick replied and his smile got more nostalgic

One of Van Thorne's memories came back to him at that time.

It was during his first year at the Advanced Hexmen University, which had its campus and the main teaching halls in the catacombs below the fortress. Despite it being catacombs, it was a pretty normal place, nothing particularly dirty in there.

That day he was walking across the corridor with books in his hands. As always, he didn't want other students to notice him. But soon a couple of his classmates ran very fast right next to him and he couldn't resist uttering a word to them:

-Hey, where are you going?-he asked

-Come to the mess hall, they're transmitting the final rounds from Vytal!-they just yelled back

Nicholas didn't hesitate. He put the books under his armpit and dashed along with other students towards the canteen.

The TV set was already transmitting the festival. At that time it was hosted by Atlas, so the commentators of the match were two Atlesian teachers. Nick looked at the screen as closely as he could from where he was sitting, almost leaning on the back of a student in front of him.

He then saw her for the first time. Pyrrha was in this final round. She fought some student of Shade academy who was clearly struggling to deflect her blows. It was the first time Nick felt this weird sensation. He could clearly feel pulse coming out of his chest, it was particularly fast. Soon his throat was pulsing as well along with his stomach feeling as if it was full of butterflies. He turned to a student that was sitting next to him in the mess hall:

-Who is that girl?-he asked

-Are you kidding me?-the guy said and grinned widely-that's Pyrrha Nikos, she won the Vytal last year and the Vytal before that. Admirable, isn't she?

-She's...-Nick was at a loss of words

-COME ON COME ON COME ON! HE'S ALMOST DOWN!-yelled the student all of a sudden

-PYRRHA! PYRRHA! PYRRHA! PYRRHA!-the entire canteen was chanting at some point, along with Nick

-Aaaaaaaand that concludes this year's Vytal! The undisputed winner is...Pyrrha Nikos!-yelled one of the commentators of the festival

Everyone in the canteen roared with joy and started to hug each other completely randomly. Some were even going as far as to smooching each other on the cheeks or throwing popcorn in the air. The student who was sitting next to Nick also hugged him tightly:

-One day...-Nick said, still stunned upon falling in love for the first time-I'm going to marry her

-Hey, it's not illegal to have dreams, bruh!-laughed the student hugging him

With that memory, Nick suddenly shed a little tear. Team CRDL was still staring at the fire. But soon Nick pulled himself together and started a conversation again:

-So, Von Greim has an escort consisting of 6 people. We had the pleasure of meeting Alhambra today. Who are the other 5?-he asked

-Well...there's Iaranja, Countess of the orange griffin. Then there's that fox Faunus, Tukabramat, countess of the yellow cat...

-Wyrdd, count of the green viper-said Russel

-Sininen, count of the blue bear-said Sky

-And...that other chick-said Cardin-I don't really know what's her name, she never said a word to us. But...Von Greim was sometimes calling her by the name "Murasaki"

-I wonder what can she do...-Nick said quietly to himself

After that chat the door opened and Neon stuck her head out from the kitchen. She was wearing oven mitts and had a chef hat on her head:

-We're having pizza for dinner!-she said cheerfully and with pride

-HELL YES!-Nick, William and team CRDL yelled at the same time

Soon everyone was sitting by the table, eating the deliciousness that a part of the team managed to make in the kitchen while Nick, William and team CRDL were sitting in the living room. The pizza was mostly done to show gratitude to Nick for his bravery and for the fact that he made the breakfast. But everyone enjoyed themselves by the table and everyone was talking about everything. It was beautiful, like a singular moment of comradery between everyone, without any conflicts or differences. It was as if everybody became one by that table.

But soon...all that good atmosphere was about to be interrupted by duty's call:

-It's getting dark-said Ciel

-Yes, let's go meet the priests-said William

-So it's time-said Nick and got up from the table slowly. He saw Neon giving him a sad look

-Do you need to go?-the Faunus asked

But Nick just got closer to her and caressed her head gently:

-I'll try my best to come back, I promise-he said and kissed Neon's cheek gently. She immediately went crimson on her face and so did Penny upon seeing that.

William left earlier. Nick couldn't see him anywhere when he and Ciel left the apartment so they just went towards the Tinsel. Van Thorne was helping Soleil memorize the road back to Grizaj's apartment. At some point, both she and the Hexman could hear a bunch of drunken yells coming from an alley with houses. When Ciel heard that she grabbed onto Nick's arm:

-Don't worry-Nick laughed upon noticing what startled Ciel-they're usually harmless for those that can protect themselves

-Yeah, I'd still rather not smell of alcoholic beverages if I'm not the one drinking-she responded, desperately trying to find an excuse for her behavior

Soon they arrived at the Tinsel. Flynt didn't lie to Ciel. It was a beautiful place. Each of the river banks had stone pavements with benches, the lanterns were tall giving the Tinsel a romantic glow at that time and even the bridge seemed elegant.

But that wasn't where Nick was planning on staying, much to Ciel's dismay, since she wanted to spend a romantic evening with the Hexman.

But instead, before Nick dragged her off to the part of the Tinsel where there were no more lanterns, pavements, benches and bridges, she managed to see what William was up to.

The cyborg got wasted again. He was wobbling on his feet, walking across the river bank while suddenly he noticed something...odd.

There was a couple standing on the pavement without a bench nearby. William saw them making out leaning against the lantern. At that point he was drunk and lost his common sense a bit. He walked up to the couple and raised his finger, while his wobbling was getting worse:

-'Scuse me, I'm sorry for interrupting you, but...ever heard of what happened here a couple of years ago?

-Eh?-the man of the couple got confused

-Genocide, mate. People drowned or were drowned or their corpses were rotting on the bottom or shit like that. Since that happened I'm starting to wonder...what is the romantic value of this river? What is so atmospheric here you people decided to suck each other's faces? And now I know

After these words William stretched his hands forward and pushed the couple straight off the pavement into the cold waters of the Tinsel. Fortunately it wasn't flowing too fast and wasn't too deep so he managed to yell his last words to the now wet couple:

-Mother fuckers turned my shop into a pizzeria!-he yelled and threw a bottle he had in his hand to the river. After that he felt relaxed, so he just turned around on his foot and walked away. The couple, still struggling to get out of the water, was confused and a bit creeped out. But actually, William was just...frustrated and wanted to take his anger out on someone.

William was planning to join Nick and Ciel a little further away from the road where Oro Grizaj's apartment was. That's where the elegant part of the Tinsel was ending and the wild one was starting. There were no bridges there, no lanterns and the river was flowing much faster. William hated the sound of the river hitting the rocks on its way. It reminded him of his futile attempt to stop Seraphimovich that night, when the leader of Lahilla stabbed his fiancée, put her in a sack for potatoes and tossed her into the river. That was the moment that shattered William. That's why he didn't really care when Seraphimovich's men locked him up in his store and threw a torch at his latest shipment of Dust fireworks. And now, with the death of Jenny's killers, William felt less pain as he was walking along the river (but it was still there).

But as he was getting closer to where Nick and Ciel were, he suddenly heard something...strange, coming from the forest to his left. At first he got a hold of his gun and pointed it at the forest:

-Who's there?-he asked

In the meantime, a little further in the forest, hiding among the needles of a coniferous tree in a perfect spot to observe Gwynbleidd, three people were sitting:

-He saw us! Shit shit shit!-hissed Tyrian

-Shut it! He didn't, he's not pointing the gun at us. But he will, if you keep shaking that branch!-Watts hissed back at the scorpion Faunus

-But if it's not us he heard, then what?-asked Hazel in a mysterious way, making the others shudder

Humming. That's what William heard. It was an echoing some kind of melody. But Vengh wasn't sure who could that be, so he instinctively aimed his gun forward and was proceeding closer to the echo's source slowly. At some point he started to recognize the melody...and that sent a shiver down his spine. It was a melody he and Jenny used to dance to at his shop after his shift.

Now he heard it again, coming from deep within the forest. He was a bit afraid, but he kept going further, with his gun drawn and ready to launch a series of bullets into anyone or anything that will try to creep up to him.

The humming was getting louder and louder. It started to bring back memories, William started seeing everything connected to the girl flash before his eyes in the fog that suddenly gathered around him. He even caught a glimpse of the ring he gave her for a second. And after that he was presented with a sight, that made him drop his rifle on the ground.

It was Jenny. Her warm brown hair was gently waving in the wind and her big blue eyes were looking like they were in tears, just like William remembered. She had an apathetic smile on her face and her skin was paler than usual. She was wearing a long, white dress, almost in the color of her skin. Will's human eye was starting to fill up with tears as he proceeded slowly towards his lost love with open arms:

-Jenny...-he was just repeating

At some point they were reunited and now Vengh was embracing the girl. She didn't utter a word, but Will didn't find any of that suspicious. Instead, he was stuck in the moment. Until she suddenly whispered:

-We'll be together, my dear. In just a second, my dearest Willy...

For some reason the cyborg felt creeped out by that last part and immediately got out of Jenny's hug:

-What do you mean "in just a second"?-he asked with suspicion in his voice

-Will, where are you going?-asked Jenny

-Nowhere, but...-Vengh was just standing 2 steps away from his fiancée but she immediately thought he wants to leave her. His suspicion was growing. "Jenny was never getting this jealous" he thought. "Maybe I should let my left eye do a scan?"

-William Vengh, be a good boy and do not walk away from me!-Jenny yet again spoke, but this time she raised her voice. It sounded cold and now was nothing like what William remembered about her. At that moment he was 100% sure. This definitely wasn't Jenny. It was...someone else. Someone or...something.

The cyborg jumped further away from the apparition and after a few more maneuvers he could feel his gun on the ground. He crouched to grab it, without taking his eyes off the apparition, which was now slowly floating towards him:

-Computer, run a quick scan of the specimen in front of me-he quickly said as he was grabbing the gun

-Scanning...-a robotic voice of the core element in William's implants said and his eye got covered by the holographic scouter

Vengh could see the progress, but it was going kind of slow with the apparition closing in. He switched his gun into a shotgun and repeated the Dust bullet. Afterwards he checked the progress. It was at 75%. "Come on, come on!" he was talking to himself. After that he heard a bleep confirming the end of the scan and a red light now repeatedly flashing:

-Grimm presence detected-said the computer with its robotic voice

-That's fine by me. I missed that a lot-said William and smiled to himself. After that he lifted his shotgun and aimed it at the apparition in front of him.

And then...this happened.

Jenny's apparition stopped, stared for a short time with disgust at William and then it let out an incredibly loud screech. The fog started to go away, a gust of menacing wind blew through the cyborg. After that, Jenny was no more. Instead, Vengh was graced with a different shape.

A monster made of shadows, the natural enemy of mankind, the creature of Grimm, was standing in front of him. It resembled a spider, its pedipalps were clicking from excitement, along with the fangs hidden under the chelicerae. He was graced with 6 hateful red eyes staring now at him instead of the blue eyes of Jenny. The spider's abdomen had eight bony limbs coming out of them, each partially covered by the bone armor. Other than that, it seemed like the spider had a bony armor on his head as well and its thread was going across his abdomen, forming the shape of a cross. The cross had the regular Grimm symbols on it. From the fangs Vengh could see yellowy venom slowly dripping:

-You're one ugly thread ejaculator-said the cyborg and let out a hearty laugh

The creature just screeched and charged at William. He jumped back, bounced off a nearby tree and landed a bit behind the monster. Now he had its spinnerets in front of him. He wanted to pierce it with a bullet but then the Grimm shot thread from it right in his face. Vengh covered himself but when he shook off the spider's web, he heard the computer's robotic voice:

-Blood filtering systems engaged-it said

-Oh come on! The thread was venomous?!-Vengh seemed unhappy about that

-Correction, this is acid. It can permanently disrupt your cognitive functions and cause a malfunction to your organic components if it's not filtered-the computer said again

-Alright, jeez. Just do your thing. I'll deal with my angry girlfriend instead-said the cyborg

The Grimm screeched again and this time it jumped. At that moment William noticed something strange.

The spider's belly wasn't plain darkness as the rest of it. At some point Vengh could see something sticking out of it. "Hands? Human hands...but made of a shadow?" he thought.

Indeed, there was some other creature below the spider's body, tied to it like the rider tied to its horse in Nuckelavee's case. It was a feminine, humanoid Grimm. Just like in case of Nuckelavee, its hands were hanging loosely and its mouth looked like it's sewn shut. But instead of the mask with horns, it had hair made of bones, which served as a few shards of an armor.

William dodged the monster's attack:

-Computer, could you analyze this monster again for me? I need to find a way to beat it-he said

-I'm almost finished with filtering. It's currently at 85%. Please hold on for a little longer

"Rubbish" William thought to himself as the Grimm was slowly getting up from the ground. This time, the cyborg decided to take his chance and started firing Dust bullets at the monster. They were bouncing off its armor but he seemed to make shot wounds where there was just the shadow. After some time, the monster was beginning to weaken. The female humanoid from below then stuck its head out and screeched at William:

-Whoa, yikes! Bestiality just got a whole lot more disgusting-he said, giving the Grimm a smug expression

The spider jumped again. William drew his staff and shot it directly at the humanoid lower body. He caught it by the arm and violently pulled his edge of the staff to the ground. The monster landed painfully on it, but it seemed a lot more pissed off than in pain. Vengh, on the other hand, ran up to the tree behind the spider and focused on using his rifle again:

-I have finished the analysis of the monster's weak spots. It appears to have its energy directly tied to the belly part of his abdomen-the computer interrupted the battle for a short time

-In other words, shoot the woman first?-asked the cyborg

-More or less-the computer responded

-Got it-said William as his gun was transforming into a sniper rifle. Once it did he pulled and pushed the bolt and put the scope against his eye. He aimed it at the patella of one of the spider's limbs, where he couldn't see the armor and squeezed the trigger. A Dust round left the gun and with a loud swish it pierced one of the limbs. The monster was now partially crippled. But for William that wasn't enough:

-If you wish to really slow it down, you have to shoot the other limbs as well-said the computer

-Oh I definitely will-said Will, spat on the ground and pulled the bolt of the rifle

The monster tried to jump at William again but he dodged it and shot another round, precisely piercing the patella of another limb. After about 6 more attempts like that, the spider was entirely crippled and couldn't get back on its limbs. William decided to take that chance:

-Now, let me fill you in on the dangers of bestiality!-he said as he clenched his fist, charging Stanley's energy, and struck an uppercut right in the spider's fangs, leaping it a little bit into the air and landing it on its back. Now the lower body of the feminine humanoid Grimm was exposed to him. He quickly switched his rifle into a pistol mode, jumped on the spider's belly and ran up to the weak spot of the monster, which was now waving its arms around in desperation.

William felt no guilt while his gun was shooting the Grimm, making it screech in agony. In fact...he found pleasure in it. After all, this monster used one of the biggest dick moves in existence. It tried to kill William by reminding him of his most regretful moment in life. For things like that, William Vengh never forgives...ever:

-And now, for the great finale!-said William with joy as the weak spot of the Grimm stopped screeching and was now having last convulsions before death. He jumped to the monster's front and wrapped his staff around the spider's short neck. Putting a lot of Stanley's strength into this move, he finally pulled so hard, the Grimm's head went flying off the rest of the body. When it was in the air, William used his staff to grab it so that it doesn't hit the ground and evaporates with the rest of the corpse into black smoke.

William triumphed over the Grimm with its head (well, technically, one of its heads) in his hands as a trophy. He was now walking back to the Tinsel's area with it. He knew the way pretty well so it didn't take him that long.

Once they made sure the cyborg walked away, Tyrian, Watts and Hazel slowly got off the tree they were sitting on. Well, actually only Arthur and Rainart climbed down. Callows just jumped and already awaited his two companions on the ground. He had a pack of popcorn in his hand and was munching it pretty loudly. Watts looked in the direction from where William came. He was clearly analyzing something in his head when suddenly Tyrian interrupted it all by shoving his pack into doctor's face:

-That was a cool fight. Want some popcorn?-he asked

Watts just frowned and with a quick move of his hand he knocked the snack out of the scorpion Faunus' hands:

-Idiot!-said the man with the moustache through his teeth

Tyrian just groaned and got on his knees, trying to desperately retrieve his shattered snack.

In the meantime, Nick and Ciel reached their destination. The ceremony was just about to begin.

A group of people in dark blue robes were standing on the river bed. Some of them were hooded and were holding torches, some were just standing with their heads looking down on the ground. At the front Nick recognized some familiar figures:

-Hey, it's the guys who played yesterday at the inn-said Nick

Indeed, there were these three women who made Neon jealous back at Daisy's inn, along with the rest of the band. But there was also a fourth woman Nick didn't recognize.

Now the three ladies from that night Nick was with Neon at the inn only sounded like Valkyries as their vocals were adding up to the atmosphere. But this fourth lady looked much more...intimidating. She was a dark blonde, had her face painted with black ink into some war symbol and she seemed like she never smiled in her life. Even the cherry haired lady, who creeped out Neon at the inn, looked like the nicest girl in the world compared to the lady with face paint.

Nick and Ciel slowly walked up towards the rest of the Aquarius priests and stood among them. The ceremony began with everyone raising their hands in the air and chanting along with the unfamiliar lady (excluding the band from the inn, who was now walking up closer to the waters of the Tinsel):

- _"Duchy jawii, duchy Nawii! Przybywajcie, zaklinamy was!"_ -the unknown lady chanted along with the crowd

-What are they saying?-Ciel asked Nick

-That's the first part of the incantation-Nick replied-now the band from the inn is going to submit their offerings and finish the chanting

Indeed, that was what happened. The familiar to Nick figures walked closer to the Tinsel. Suddenly each and every one of the members took out a small ceremonial dagger and made a small cut in their hand. Blood started to slowly drip into the water, immediately getting washed away by the river's flow. Ciel cringed a bit upon seeing that. She couldn't understand why someone would hurt themselves to try and summon a deity that exists probably only on the pages of a legend:

- _"Wody przeczystej mocą, wzywamy i zaklinamy! Niech graf przeklęty szczeźnie! We krwi się własnej utopi!"_ -the band from the inn chanted their part of the incantation. Nick seemed surprised

-Slava!-the rest of the priests yelled and raised their fists up in the air

-What are they chanting now?-asked Ciel

-That's strange-replied Nick-it seems like they're not summoning Aquarius for their personal gain, but to...put a curse on Von Greim and eventually kill him! There really is still a beacon of hope in this town, even without me around!

At that moment Nick felt someone's gaze on him. He looked around and noticed the terrifying dark blonde lady:

- _"Wy tam! Co robicie na ceremonii dla Wodnika?!"_ -she said

The crowd then suddenly grabbed both Van Thorne and Soleil by their wrists and pushed them forward, making them land on their faces right in front of the lady on the river's bed. But then the band from the inn noticed all the ruckus and the brunette interfered:

- _"Maszka, spokojnie! To przyjaciele"_ -she said

-What was that for?!-Ciel seemed a bit pissed off about being dragged out of the crowd like that

The band from the inn was about to start talking to Van Thorne when all of a sudden the air by the river bed has been filled with mist. Nick didn't hear the river flowing anymore and neither did anyone else. The dark blonde's appearance suddenly softened upon hearing sounds coming from the water:

-Nick?-Ciel walked up to the Hexman, finding him in the blinding mist

-Yes?

-I'm scared

After that the band from the inn and the dark blonde slowly retreated into the crowd as a few rocks surrounding the river banks were trembling. Soon the mist stopped blinding everyone and, instead of covering their entire bodies, it covered only their legs to their knees. And then the water burst in the air, making everyone shudder. For a short time it seemed as if it was a geyser, then it started to resemble a fountain. But it wasn't a fountain. And everyone gasped when the fountain started to shape itself...into a creature.

The creature was humanoid. Slime was dripping from its body, little black eyes were staring soullessly into the crowd from a bony, grey body. The creature wore an outfit made entirely out of algae. On its bald head Nick could see holes from removed horns. The creature was slowly walking through the mist, making it disappear upon his touch, approaching Van Thorne and Soleil slowly:

- _"To on! Usłyszał nasze wołanie!"_ -one of the people from the crowd said happily

The creature's neck then rapidly bent and looked at the crowd with a piercing look:

- _"Milczeć! Nie do was przyszedłem! To ten tu mnie interesuje!"_ -he said with a gurgling voice and pointed his finger at Van Thorne

-What is he saying?-Ciel asked, cowering behind the Hexman

-He says he came to see me-replied Nick, still quite confused with what was going on

Aquarius turned to Hexman slowly and approached him. He smelled of river mud and humidity. After a staring contest, with Nick slowly awaiting his movement, the former demon suddenly grinned. He had spiky teeth, like most of the demons:

-By the Maidens, you've really grown!

-Huh?-Nick's confusion only deepened

-I remember when you were like 2 or 3 years old, you never had a single hairless spot on your head!-Aquarius was starting to sound less like a former demon, more like Nick's relative he never remembered

-I...don't really remember my infant days-Nick laughed, confused

-Oh, don't worry. I'm not offended. But by Maidens, let me look at you!

Aquarius got even closer to Nick and started to stare into his eyes, checking out his muscles, even pinching his cheeks a little. At some point he swiftly moved behind Nick. Ciel gasped and quickly moved away. After a quick examination, Aquarius returned to where he previously stood and smiled even wider:

-You've got your mother's curves-he said-and your father's hair

-So...you knew my father?-Nick asked

-Did I know him? Young man, I nearly became your godfather. Of course we knew each other

-Nearly?

-Yeah, I didn't because your mother's sister jumped in my place. Oh but enough about me! How can I help you, Nicky?

The crowd of Aquarius priests was looking with their jaws hanging loosely. The band from the inn and the dark blonde were particularly shocked. The former demon noticed that and said with his strict voice:

- _"Idźcie do domów! Wysłuchałem waszych modlitw, jeszcze nad nimi pomyślę!"_

The crowd relaxed and walked away from the Tinsel, deeper into the town, to their homes.

Aquarius and Nick were talking about things Ciel completely didn't understand, even though they weren't talking in their native languages. At some point, however, she felt the creepy spirit's eyes on her. He raised his eyebrow, interested:

-And who is that lady? Are you cosmopolitan in that case as well, Nicholas?-he asked

-That's Ciel, my...my...-Nick was stuttering because of confusion overflowing him

-I'm Ciel Soleil, his girlfriend-said the girl and she wanted to stretch her hand out but instead she just bowed to Aquarius

-Girlfriend! Ah, it's a pleasure!-said the former demon

-Same here-said Ciel, nervously laughing while clinging to Van Thorne, who was already red on his face from awkwardness

-So...Nick-Aquarius got more serious and cold with his voice's tone-I think I know why you're really here...

-Von Greim...-Nick just said

-An upsetting case to say the least-said Aquarius-maybe Dante is a piece of shit, but he was right about one thing. Traitors really are the worst scum that walks the earth

-Yeah but...sometimes I feel like he had a motive. Like avenging his sister

-Oh don't even think like that! Salem brought this fate on herself! It's her fault she made a deal with Dante and is now cursed with immortality-Aquarius got a bit angry, thinking what Nick just said was ridiculous

-Salem? Isn't that the lady that used to lead the Grimm?-asked Ciel

Aquarius suddenly stiffened, gave her a menacing look, got closer to Nick and covered his mouth from one side with his hand:

-Nick, she knows too much-he said

-Don't you dare...-Nick just said, feeling responsibility and shards of feelings for Ciel growing in him

But Aquarius just winked and dashed at Ciel. In a blink of an eye he disappeared with her in the Tinsel:

-Ciel!-Nick yelled-you son of a bitch, I knew something was fishy about you (heh, literally)

Without hesitation Nick jumped into the cold, dark and muddy waters of the river. He wasn't used to a temperature this cold before, so at first shivers were running down his spine. And he could also see nothing beneath the water's surface here, where it was deeper than at other parts further in Gwynbleidd.

He blinked a couple of times to trigger his Hexman sight and started to look around him in desperation, searching for Ciel. "I'll rip this fucking demon's throat out" he was thinking.

Soon he saw them both.

Aquarius had an insolent grin on his face as he was holding Ciel underwater by her neck. She was suffocating and needed air immediately. The spirit gave Nick a piercing look:

-Save yourself, Nicholas! A Hexman's life is worth more than those he protects! These are your father's words!-he said clearly under water

Nick only got more pissed off and snapped his fingers. He used the Aard sign as a speed boost from the bottom, just so that he could tackle Aquarius and release Ciel out of his grip.

But the demon just laughed and suddenly disappeared into foam. Ciel was no longer held captive, but she was losing air even quicker and started going down. "She can't pass out. In the Tinsel that means hypothermia! She's going to die of cold!" Nick immediately thought and dashed towards Ciel. He grabbed her before she could hit the bottom of the river. "Come on, Ciel. Don't you dare die in my arms. I can't lose you. I can't! Do you understand me?!" he thought and finally got the craziest idea.

He brought Ciel closer to himself and connected his lips to hers. He made sure there are no empty spaces between them and with all the strength he had in his lungs he pumped air into Soleil's lungs. She was still warm, but she was unconscious. Nick felt smarting in his eyes because of tears forming in them underwater. "Please don't die. Please don't die" he was just repeating in his thoughts.

And then she opened her eyes.

Nick wanted to smile, but then he felt as he loses his last bits of air. Ciel felt Nick's kiss as he tried to save her, but upon seeing the Hexman drowning she wanted to sacrifice herself. Nick couldn't allow that. "We're not monsters, Aquarius. We never were" were Nick's last thoughts before he snapped his fingers, making Ciel fly out of the water to the shore with Aard as he went down to the bottom. He was blacking out, feeling death's grasp nearby.

But something pulled him out and seconds before he was going to die he was spitting out water from his mouth. His hair was a mess, his clothes were entirely wet and the dim, but still visible light of the surface was blinding him. But internally Nick was more than happy that he could save Ciel. Even though they both smelled like the river they just got out of:

-Well, needless to say I'm truly surprised

Aquarius was standing near the waters, turned back to those who were with him on the shore. Nick could hear the flow again. Nobody else was nearby so the Hexman immediately felt confusion:

-You...you've tried to drown her!-he yelled, angry at first

-A complete bluff-said Aquarius-I wouldn't do that, not anymore. It was all a trial to see if you're just like your father...mentally

-But that's...-Nick was even more confused

-You just lost to Nick and don't want to admit defeat!-yelled Ciel, still heavily breathing

-Mrs. Soleil, if I wanted to drown you I'd hold you much tighter underwater. And I would resume the river's flow-Aquarius turned to the two still lying on the ground

Nick was slowly pulling himself together as he was getting up from the ground. Ciel just crawled up to the nearby rock and leaned her back against it. Aquarius approached Nick and smiled. But this time it wasn't the smile you'd see on a face of a relative that remembers you when you were an infant. This was a genuine smile, Nick could almost feel that the spirit is proud of him:

-You've risked your own life to save this girl. That is something worth praise, even from your father

-Guess he would criticize me if I did something like that during my training days anyway

-Your father was a wise man, but he didn't know everything. Among things he was unwilling to admit was a golden rule, Nicholas

-Which is?

-Professionalism doesn't define heroes. It's what lies deep in their hearts that makes them worth someone's sympathy

-That's...oddly true

-And judging by your actions today, I say that you have in your heart the same thing I had when I defied Dante. It's love, Nicholas

Nick turned around to look at Ciel, shivering from cold, leaning on that rock. His first thought was to sit next to her and hug her:

-Hey, Nick!-suddenly everyone heard a voice coming from the river banks. It was William, who managed to walk across the banks to the place where the ceremony was before Aquarius showed up

-Is that William Vengh? I almost didn't recognize him because of these cybernetics-said Aquarius-Nick, I can see that you want to help this girl even now. Go to her. I'll have a chat with William here. I have...something that should belong to him. And also...if you ever need me, just count your blessings and I'll come to your aid for a short time. But my options are limited, so I won't be able to help you with everything

-You're not going to try and drown him too?-asked Nick sarcastically

-No-Aquarius replied in a serious tone

Nick felt his coat managed to get slightly drier. So with that he slowly approached Ciel. In the meantime William was approaching them but called by Aquarius he immediately stiffened:

-Ah, you must be Aquarius-said the cyborg, clearly unhappy about encountering a former demon

-Indeed I am, William-the spirit replied when he approached Vengh

-What do you want from me? I have places to be-the cyborg was getting impatient

-I will only take a moment. You still remember your childhood love, Jenny, right?-he asked and started grinning

William smiled back and with insolence raised in the air the head of the Grimm he killed:

-Yeah, I remember her quite well-he said

-Ah, an Arachnomorph-said Aquarius-I hope it didn't hurt you too bad

-Only my human parts felt it-said William with sarcasm

-Do not consider yourself so inferior to others-replied Aquarius and unclenched his fist. He held something silver in the palm, something slightly glowing

-It's...-Will looked closer. It was a silver ring with a small white gem in one spot. He looked at his hand. The same ring was on his ring finger. That meant the one Aquarius held was...

-Jenny would want you to have it, simply to save your heart from oblivion...

William took the ring from Aquarius with a shaking hand. A tear was forming in his human eye:

-I...I never forgot. And I never will. Thank you, Aquarius-he said and walked away from the former demon. He had only one thought in mind. Get back to Grizaj's apartment and have a drink.

In the meantime Nick walked up to Ciel and sat next to her. She was shaking both from fear and from cold. When Nick made sure he's close enough to her, he was awkwardly silent. But then she sneezed:

-Gesundheit-he immediately said, secretly thinking her sneeze was quite cute

He was sitting like that until he realized she must be very cold. He took off his coat and covered her with it. Even though it was still a bit humid, it would at least give her some warmth. She immediately looked at him:

-I guess...I turned out to be the biggest fangirl after all-she said

-Don't think about that now-Nick just silenced her and leaned his head gently on Soleil's. She did the same

-Nick?

-Yes, Ciel?

-Promise me you will return...

-I'll do my best

-I know we haven't known each other that long but...

-I understand you very well

-But I don't understand how come you're not mad

-Because I feel the same

Ciel then blushed as Nicholas was staring into her eyes. He still seemed tired, but she knew that he really means what he just said. There was just something about him that ensured her. He didn't even notice as her head was getting closer and closer to him...to finally land them both in a kiss. This time, nobody was pumping air:

-I guess I'm not needed here anymore. Unless you two lovebirds want a blanket, it's quite cold even for me-Aquarius said from the distance

-Get out already-Nick managed to say in the short break before Ciel pulled him towards her again and started to passionately kiss his lips

Aquarius just smiled to himself. "You'll do well, Nicholas. Your mother would be proud" thought the spirit as he was turning into a stream of water and jumping into the Tinsel.

Shortly after Aquarius disappeared, Nick and Ciel finished making out. They got up from the ground and started to slowly walk away from the river. They were fed up with it for the night.

There weren't many people on the streets of Gwynbleidd as Nick was walking Ciel to Oro Grizaj's apartment. Throughout the way, she was sneezing, making Nick concerned:

-Ciel, when you get inside, wrap yourself in a blanket and sit by a fireplace with a cup of mulled wine. The Tinsel's really getting into you-he said as they both reached Oro Grizaj's apartment's doorstep

-I will-she replied and shook Nick's coat off her shoulders. The Hexman took it from her and wrapped himself in it. After all, he couldn't go into battle without it and the weapons it hindered

They kissed one last time and Nick walked away from the safe spot in Gwynbleidd. Once he was near the main plaza, he could already see the bloody red cape waving in the distance. Alhambra was expecting him:

-So...you really did keep your part of the deal-said the Count

-Let's get this over with, masked wolf-replied Nick and stretched his hand, making one of his swords appear in his hand out of his sleeve

-Just straight up business then? Alright, I kinda like you already-replied Alhambra and, surprisingly to Nick, a similar to his sword appeared in the Count's hand

As the duel between Nick and the Count in the wolf's mask was about to begin, Ciel was sitting by the fireplace in Oro Grizaj's house. Just like Nick said, she was wrapped in a blanket one of the members of team CRDL brought her. Everyone else besides William was with her in the living room. Even Daisy turned out to be on a visit:

-So you saw Aquarius with your own eyes?-asked Penny. She seemed particularly excited about Ciel's return

-Yes-Soleil replied and smiled, while staring into the fire

-And he tried to drown you?-asked Flynt

-Yes

-And Nick was the one who saved you?-asked Neon

-Well, to be fair, he acted like an asshole. I tried to pull him out of the water and he just used one of his signs to send me flying to the shore

-Awwwww, Ciel feels bad because she was treated like a princess-Neon said with a sarcasm

Team CRDL laughed joyfully with Oro and Daisy at that little mischief from the feline Faunus:

-But on a serious note-Penny suddenly sounded more strict-let's hope he returns safely

Suddenly everyone rapidly turned to the left when they heard loud knocking to Grizaj's doors. William was upstairs so everyone was confused:

-Who could that be so late at night?-the huntsman thought as he was approaching the door

Meanwhile, the duel was intense. Alhambra was extremely cautious about where he was cutting and Nick soon found it hard to dodge. The Count's footwork was impressive, Nick's attempts at imitating it were not nearly as good. At some point they clashed their swords in the air. The Count was pushing at his enemy's sword, trying to dominate him. But Nick outsmarted him at that time and kicked him in the tibia. Alhambra hissed from pain, but other than that he wasn't bothered. He then did a somersault and landed with acrobatic precision on his feet. Nick was starting to admire the Count's moves:

-You're keeping up pretty well, Nicholas. But there's something bugging me-said Nick's opponent, as he was correcting the cape on his back

-And what is that?-asked Nick. He was worked up so all the exhaustion from the Tinsel wore off. He was only focused on managing to hit Alhambra

-Are you good at geometry?-asked the Count

-I suppose I could be better-said the Hexman

-Then let me give you a lesson-replied Alhambra, tightened the grip on his sword and suddenly dashed towards Nick and tried to cut him while swinging the blade behind his back.

Nick blocked the blow, but it kicked him back a little. Alhambra just snickered and jumped back:

-That was an obtuse angle. Most people can't block it-he said

He dashed at Nicholas again and this time tried to cut him but from above his head. Nick blocked him and wanted to do a counter, but Alhambra's footwork outsmarted him and he landed on his previous spot:

-That was a straight angle-he said

Nicholas was slowly starting to realize what moves is Alhambra using to defeat him. But he denied the thought and focused on the fight instead. This time the Count prepared his sword in a different trajectory and did a few swings before breathing in and dashing again.

But Nick just smiled to himself. And when Alhambra was about to stab him, he jumped and landed on the Count's blade:

-And that's...

-An acute angle-Nick interrupted Alhambra, who was so focused on that attack he didn't realize on time that this time it was Nick's footwork that was quicker

Wasting no time, Van Thorne kicked the Count in the face, where he had the mask. Alhambra got knocked back a couple of meters away, his mask had a crack in it. Nick also noticed he probably broke his nose because there were two streams of blood dripping down his neck:

-That was my move. I call it "the right angle"-said Nick and smirked

-Impressive-Alhambra replied-I need to memorize that. But we're done joking around, Nick. It's time to get serious

The red Count grabbed his sword with two hands and plunged it onto the ground. For a second he was letting out a weak, dark red glow and after that Nick noticed something terrifying. From Alhambra's back six non-human traits were sticking out. They looked like tentacles. Van Thorne was shocked:

-You're a Faunus?-he asked

-Nah, this is just my semblance. One of the things that were hidden from me for too long-said Alhambra

After these words he lifted himself from the ground on his two tentacles, as the other four were still menacingly wobbling. He gave Nick a sign to attack him.

Van Thorne dashed forward and jumped. He was now holding two swords and was trying to slash the tentacles. But two of them acted as a shield, while the other two were countering Nick, trying to make him lose stability in air. Alhambra was not moving an inch:

-You see now, Van Thorne? I am leagues above your petty Hexman techniques. I have a semblance, a luxury you cannot afford. And now I will use it to rip you to shreds, from head to toe

At some point Nick got tired again and jumped back, stopping his dance of blades in the air. Alhambra was untouched, his tentacles seemed to be warming up. He then put his feet back on the ground and tightened the grip on his sword:

-Now, let's put them all into test, shall we?-he said

And he dashed towards Nick with all his tentacles and his sword ready to rip him apart. But Nick kind of expected that. That's why his back was leaning against a wall. When Alhambra was dashing, he was actually also charging. Which meant that he wasn't in charge of his footwork in that split second. That gave Nick an idea and he was forced to put it to the test when Alhambra got closer. Right before the Count could grab him, Nick jumped over his head and landed a bit behind him. Alhambra lost control over his legs and with impending force he crashed into the wall of a house Nick was leaning his back against. That knocked him out for a bit. And Nick didn't waste the opportunity. He dashed forward himself and made a couple of vicious cuts in a straight angle. When Alhambra pulled himself together, he realized Nick made incisions in his tentacles and cut them off. The Count was clearly shocked as his back started to hurt from the loss of aura and the wounds the loss of extra limbs costed him. He then did something unexpected. He screamed very loudly from pain. That attracted attention of people who were trying to sleep in nearby homes. They were now all staring at the duel happening at the plaza near the gate to the fortress of the Brotherhood. Alhambra had trouble walking up to Nicholas now, who was trying to lure him into the central point of the plaza, which was clearly visible from the window on top of the middle tower of the fortress-his former home:

-You...little...brat...fucking half Grimm-Alhambra was stuttering as he was getting closer to Nick

Shortly after these words he dropped on the ground, hitting it with his face. That smashed his wolf mask into pieces. Nick could now see the face of the one he struggled with.

And his deepest fears were confirmed.

When he turned around the dying Alhambra, he immediately noticed his eyes were glowing. They were pale blue, but most importantly...they had narrow pupils:

-Surprise...-he said and smiled, exposing his teeth, which were now getting drowned in blood

-I suspected that-said Nick-but I would've never thought I'd be right

-Shame...I was waiting for this moment so badly...-Alhambra tried to laugh

-Under Von Greim's command the only thing that awaited you was the loss of balance, along with death itself. I can't believe you thought he's unlocking your semblance...

-Unlike your father...Von Greim is a man of his word...he promised...to make me a symbol of Mountain Glenn...we pillaged countless villages and I'm proud of that...I'm proud I made the scum of Vale feel the wrath of the last citizen of what was destined to be an even greater civilization!

-Not anymore. Your legend ends here as well as Mountain Glenn's history...

-Our legend...has just begun, Van Thorne...if you cross that gate, you will see things you're gonna wish you could unsee...

-One thing I definitely don't want to see anymore is your face...

And after these words Van Thorne raised his foot and with all the force he had he violently stomped on Alhambra's face. He heard his skull crushing and his brain flattening with it. The Count of the Red Wolf, the last citizen of Mountain Glenn's failed civilization, the traitor of the Hexman school of Wolf, Alhambra, was dead.

The spectators of the duel all gasped at the same time. It's been a while since they last saw with their own eyes as someone gets killed in an unnatural way. Nick's boot was stained with Alhambra's blood. The Hexman just scraped what was on it on the pavement. After that he just spat:

-Gotta make sure you stay down-he said and snapped his fingers. Igni, the sign of fire, surrounded the corpse of the Count and started to incinerate it. The people were watching in fright. But when the ashes of Alhambra were scattered by the wind, the people suddenly realized something. The Count, who was under the command of the tyrant who treated them like things, was no more. And when they realized that they started cheering. But Nick didn't have time to listen to their gratitude. He just hid his swords and walked across the plaza, slowly approaching the gate to his former home. But before he crossed the doorstep, he looked at the central point of the plaza...and had a flashback reminding him of what happened there.

Nick was out on a walk back then. He was 6 years old and was on a break between trainings. He was wearing his silver cape and had his short blade attached to the belt of his pants. At some point he was so focused on noticing his shoelaces were untied, he didn't see he's walking right into a kid who was walking across the plaza with an apple in his hand:

-Unf!-they both groaned as they bumped into each other

When Nick's butt stopped hurting so badly he managed to get up. The other kid didn't seem that harmed either but he had trouble with getting up and his apple now belonged to the pavement:

-My apologies-said Nick and stretched out his hand to the stranger, trying to help him up

-It's nothing-said the boy and finally got up by himself, not using Van Thorne's help

He walked away, not picking up the apple he dropped while falling. As Nick stared into the wasted fruit, he felt bad for the kid he bumped into. So he rushed after him until he was close enough to him:

-Hey, I'm sorry I knocked out your apple!-he said

-I said it was nothing-replied the boy and smiled. At that moment Nick noticed the color of his eyes. It was a strange mix of grey and turquoise

-But I feel responsible. Here, you can have my apple! I wasn't going to eat anyway, it's too early for me

The unknown boy then stopped and gave Van Thorne an angry look:

-Do I look like I need charity, asshole?!-he now yelled

-I'm sorry, I didn't want to offend you in any way-Nick was now a bit scared-I just wanted to make up your loss for you. They keep telling us on trainings to always make up to ourselves and those around us

-Who's they?-asked the stranger, raising his eyebrow. He stared a little bit at the apple in Nick's hand and ultimately took it

-My teachers here at home-said Van Thorne and pointed at the fortress

The boy was looking at what Nick was pointing at for a moment only to burst into laughter:

-You can't be serious! You're one of these Hexmen? You, a kid like that?-he was saying through the laugh

-I'm not a Hexman yet! But I am a part of the Brotherhood! I even have a sword!-Nick was desperately trying to make himself sound credible

-I bet I could get a blade like that for 6 Liens in that store over there!

Nick then sighed. This boy's denial of truth was getting on his nerves. He breathed in, straightened and said very clearly:

-Nicholas Van Thorne, designation 1934, Fox school, rank 5 novice, my mother's name is Yennefer Badwitch, my father is the current Grandmaster, Sihill Vel Gwyhyr-he said as quickly as he could

The stranger immediately felt confused. But about one thing he was certain-this boy with a cape was dead serious, so he could've been telling the truth.

At that moment Nick looked at the watch he had on his wrist:

-Gah! Quarter past 10, I'm going to be late for Grimmistics! It was nice talking to you. What's your name?

-William Vengh, but...hey! Where are you going?! You forgot your apple!-yelled the boy without cape

-Eat it! It's yours! I have to attend classes, I'll see you here after lunch, okay?

-Uhm...okay!-said William from a distance and walked away from the plaza. He now was interested in getting to know that kid better. After all...he never had someone to talk to before...

And now Nick was looking at that place from the same perspective. But instead of William there was a crowd on the plaza, waving and cheering at him. He didn't have the time to silence them all. With the death of Alhambra, Von Greim would notice Nick is coming for him. The crowd was only making it clearer. And with that thought, Nicholas opened the gate to the fortress and entered it. He was returning to his home.

As always, he landed in the hall. Officially it was supposed to be a hall, but it was in fact a huge area where tons of studying Hexmen were taking a walk every day. For the Hexmen that weren't yet in the Advanced University, the entire Gwynbleidd was their campus. So they were going home every day after classes. But before they were doing so, this hall served them as a hangout spot during the breaks, mainly because the mess hall was closed until the end of every school's lessons. On the corridor potential Hexmen were mostly eating their elevenses which were mostly things they managed to quickly buy from nearby shops. That's why most of the school's staff was patrolling the hall during their shifts. But for Nick there was no such thing as a member of the school's staff for a very simple reason...

He was rushing across the corridor. Fortunately for him, students were already proceeding to their classes as well, so he didn't have to apologize for coming through. But at some point he heard no reaction to his right and bumped into someone yet again. "Damn it, why do I keep bumping into people today?!" he thought as he was getting up from the ground:

-Ah, there you are-said an adult male voice above Nick

When Van Thorne got up and finally got a clear view, he knew too well who was standing in front of him. It was a slightly muscular man, wearing an amber t-shirt with a silver pullover on it and black flared jeans. He also had brown trekking boots on his feet with red shoelaces. From his back, Nick could see a golden cape loosely hanging. Even though he seemed friendly on the eyes, his moustache and a goatee were ruining this image, making him look like a strict person instead. And he kind of was. It was the Grandmaster of the Brotherhood, Nick's father, Sihill Vel Gwyhyr. Next to him stood the man Nick would grow up to hate more than anything one day, Schwartz Von Greim. But at that time Nick didn't know him that well yet because he was only meeting him on Grimmistics lessons, which he taught:

-I'm sorry, dad. I got caught up in a conversation with someone outside of school and forgot to check the watch-said Nick, slowly bowing to his dad

-You had me worried there for a while-said Sihill, making himself sound serious

-I apologize for that-Nick bowed even lower

-Sih, don't stress the kid too much-Von Greim bumped into the conversation-Nicholas has already surpassed the rest of his class in Grimmistics, he handed in all his assignments and already booked a term for the graduation finals. He's well organized, just like you. Besides, it's May, the time of revising material, you can let him off the hook

Nicholas then straightened back up and looked at the man next to his father:

-Professor Von Greim, am I going to be punished?-he asked

-Oh, son, I almost forgot-Sihill replied instead-mr. Schwartz is no longer going to teach you

-Oh? Did you expel him?-Nick asked, turning his head to his dad with a questioning look

-Nah, I definitely wouldn't do that-replied Vel Gwyhyr and started to laugh with Von Greim-mr. Schwartz is instead going to become our new chamberlain

-Ahahaha, I see-Nick felt kind of bad for suggesting such a radical thing before

-Anyway, you go now to the classroom-said Sihill-wouldn't want to ruin your first impression on the new teacher, eh?

-Right away, father-said Nick and started to walk away towards the classrooms wing

-Ah, and after lunch I'll see you on the courtyard for the monthly sign checkup-Sihill shouted when Nick was already too far to hear him normally talk

-Alright!-Nick just quickly replied and dashed towards his classroom

-Huh, Von Greim. Nick running to the classroom like that really brings back memories to me-Sihill turned to his chamberlain

-Brings back memories, doesn't it?-a sound that seemed to be a male voice echoed throughout the entire hall now, where Nick was standing. After a short while, Nick realized that it's a slightly older and now a bit asthmatic voice of Von Greim. THAT Von Greim, who was his father's chamberlain and a friend. Nicholas immediately drew his two pistols, just in case this traitor shows up in the distance with his gun.

But nobody was coming. All he could hear were voices of villagers slowly returning to their homes. Other than that the hall was completely quiet. And it was making Nick upset, reminding him that Hexmen are history.

He was cautiously looking around, pointing guns at anything that seemed out of place. Glass on the windows was a bit stained, no lights were on, cobwebs were covering the angles between columns and the ceiling and from the outside Nick could also see that the walls were slowly becoming home to a particularly vicious ivy. But besides that, the Hexman knew all too well how the hall looked like. And then he noticed something out of place at last and pointed his guns at it.

It was a speaker. One you'd see someone use to call everyone for lunch or call someone to their office. That's where Nick heard Von Greim's voice come from again:

-I have to say, you've impressed me quite dearly-said the traitor-despite these very unpleasant moments in your childhood, you went through puberty and now look at you! The first Hexman to potentially beat Garrett's record in breaking women's hearts! Which is not something I could say about that peasant, Vengh, even if I wanted to. You were really lucky to be locked in the burning shed instead of a burning fireworks warehouse!

After that Von Greim let out a quite disturbing laugh, through which he was coughing in a disgusting way:

-Well if it isn't my dearest chamberlain, Schwartzy!-said Nick, disguising his internal rage as mockery-how have you been holding up all these years?

-Oh ho, you've really turned into a brat now! I remember you used to apologize for not drawing a straight enough line!

-And you've really turned into a coward now! I mean a long distance megaphone? Who uses that? Oh wait, I know. That midget with big dick complex who recently lost his heart!

Both Van Thorne and Von Greim started to laugh. If the situation wasn't as it was, you could get a false impression that these two are actually friends. But in reality it was the complete opposite:

-Alright, we've had our laughs but it's time to end this, Nicholas. You've caused my sister and my boss enough harm. Not to mention killing my favorite associate...

-Oh so that's who Seraphimovich was to you...a "boss"...come on Von Greim, you can't think I'm that stupid, right?

-Like it or not, for a while I actually thought that this midget was above me! But I'm done talking. I suppose you came here for an audience with me. And I'd be more than happy to meet you, but...my associates think otherwise, I'm afraid. They saw you as you stomp on their comrade like on a burnt out cigarette. And now, they want your blood...provided my other friends don't outplay them...

-What other friends?-Nick asked himself

At that moment Nick heard scratching sounds on the floor a couple of meters away from him, in the direction towards the classroom wing. His hair stood straight when the scratches multiplied in an instant and soon turned into a choir of squeaky noises. "Thank Maidens Velvet's not here with me right now" Van Thorne thought. "On the other hand, she would look cute trying to..."

But his thought was interrupted when he noticed the source of all those squeaky noises.

It was like one big shadow on the ground at first, but Nick didn't let that fool him. He could clearly see little shapes with short black paws with little claws scratching the ground. A lot of these things were charging at him. Entirely black, with only an armor made of bone on their heads, with four red piercing eyes that know nothing but hate, a pair of pointy ears and sharp teeth. Those were creatures of Grimm, ones that were extremely dangerous in swarms. And such a swarm was now charging at Nick. The Hexman wished those were regular rats instead:

-That's right, Van Thorne. Ratiguns, your worst childhood nightmares. Only this time, the nightmare is reality!-said Von Greim through the megaphone and laughed

Nick didn't waste any more time. He tightened the grip on his pistols and started shooting the swarm, praying in his mind for his guns to have enough Dust bullets to take out all of them.

These Grimm weren't particularly strong, one bullet was enough to put the weaklings of the pack down. But the more of them were dying, the faster they were charging. At some point Nick found himself leaning against a column and getting desperate as he felt his sleeves slowly run out of Dust mags. At some point the rats were trying to jump at him and he had to switch one of his guns into a sword to keep up.

But then, it turned out Nick had more luck than he thought.

One of the stained windows shattered into pieces and after that Van Thorne heard a series of shots. A few rats let out an agonal screech, making the Hexman think that now the swarm is going to jump at him. But instead, the rats scratched and squeaked in another direction and ran off to a different target:

-Come get some, mother fuckers! Say hello to my Dust cheese melter, the Fat fucking Kim! Computer, measure the amount of Ratiguns in the swarm for me

It was William. When Nick looked in his direction, he was looking through his gun's scope, firing at every Grimm rat that ran faster than others:

-Be careful, don't let them get too close!-Nick yelled

-I'll keep them at distance-William yelled back-but you must go. Von Greim is at the top of the central tower! You know the way, right? You told me it once when I signed up for the Brotherhood!

Nick nodded and ran off deeper into the fortress. "Library, dungeons, mess hall, courtyard" he thought. That was the path to his biggest enemy.

At some point he kicked a door open and when he got inside he quickly slammed it behind him. "I hope William can hold these Ratiguns off for long enough" he thought:

-Oh, you're one particularly ugly mother fucker!-Van Thorne heard William's yells through the door. But instead he looked around with nostalgia.

It was the library of Hexmen. That's where most of the signs research was taking place. And that's why it was a perfect hangout spot for the Griffin's school. These nerdy and quite geeky as well Hexmen were known for walking around with tons of books in their hands. Someone who wasn't a part of the Griffins was a rare sight in the library. But that didn't mean that it wasn't a friendly space. The first thing you see when you get into the library is a carpet spread across the floor. That's for students to sit on and read, because the tables were limited and armchairs by the fireplace to the right were restricted for the librarian, the Grandmaster and possibly a master of one of the schools.

There were two rows of tables, five for each of them with four chairs connected to each table. Students used these tables to either read, have a chat or play cards and board games if they're on a break. Behind the tables there were four (to each side of the library), giant bookstands with numerous bookshelves on them. Because of their height some students couldn't reach books that were on the top shelves. That's why the librarian was borrowing a trampoline for the students to jump on and get their desired book. The library was ending with a decorated door which had a big Griffin statue slightly above it, leading to an empty room with a passage to the dark, humid dungeons, which was the hangout spot of the school of Cat.

Now the library, naturally, was in a bad shape. Cobwebs and lots of dust (not the one from weapons) looked like the books were their new homes. On the other hand, the fireplace was lit. And when Nicholas stared into it, before he could get suspicious, something else from his childhood flashed in his mind.

He was sitting on the carpet, reading a book which was his assignment for Signology, the main subject of the school of Griffin. The book was a scientific analysis of the only sign that didn't have its source in the brain or in the heart, Yrden. For Nick, it was written in a very boring way, but it was his area of interest. As he was reading that book, he suddenly heard a voice above him:

-Hey, kid. What's that you're reading?

The voice sounded very friendly and adult, so Nick immediately got up from the carpet and turned to the person who said that. It was the librarian, a tall and handsome man with slicked black hair, lilac eyes with narrow pupils and a light beard. He was wearing his dark blue and white checkered shirt, a brown sweater over it, jeans and suit shoes. He also had an orange cape and a Griffin medallion around his neck. Seeing him, Nick immediately showed him the book he had. He took it in his hands and smirked:

-"Spina Animarum"-he read the title

-That's right. It's my homework-Nick responded without enthusiasm

-I know how you feel, I always thought it's pretty mundane myself. Hey, I think I know how you could manage to do this homework without unnecessary torment. Why don't you sit with me by the fireplace?

Nick's eyes opened wide:

-But I...I'm not allowed-he stuttered

-Well, you're the Grandmaster's son, so...you're kind of privileged in this case-the librarian said and chuckled

Nick and the librarian walked up to the fireplace to the right. Other students focused their attention on Van Thorne for a short time, kind of not believing what they see.

When Nick sat his bottom on the armchair in front of the librarian, he immediately felt the warmth of the fireplace. The atmosphere was making him feel more like in his chamber than in the library:

-Well, what do you think?-asked the librarian as he was taking out a book he hid on the armchair

-It feels like home-Nick replied

-You are home-the librarian laughed and smiled-see now if you can read your assigned chapter of Spina Animarum

Nick opened the book on the chapter assigned for him as a homework. But this time it wasn't a dull scientific analysis he was presented with when he laid his eyes on the pages. It was much more intriguing. What caused Nick to suddenly get into an assignment so much he didn't know how fast he read the chapter? Was it the warmth of the fireplace? Better lighting? The comfort of the armchair? Or maybe the librarian was secretly using Axii on him? Nick didn't care about that. Instead he put the book away next to him on the armchair:

-Before you go, put the book away on its shelf-said the librarian without taking his eyes off the book

Nick smiled to himself, because that meant jumping on the trampoline. So he quickly got up, took the book and ran off to the right bookstand. The shelf could be seen, but out of reach. The trampoline was nearby. Excited, Nick got on the contraption, bent his knees and made a joyful jump. He jumped a couple of times on purpose until he located the spot from which he took the Spina Animarum. Once he put it there, however, he didn't feel like leaving yet. He wanted to sit down again in that armchair and talk a little bit more to the very nice librarian.

When he sat down on that armchair again, the same warmth and the friendly atmosphere returned to him. He then looked at the book the librarian was reading:

-"Ninjas of love"?-he asked

The librarian gave him an embarrassed look:

-I hope you're not going to judge me for reading this smut?-he asked

-What's smut?-Nick asked

The librarian then breathed a sigh of relief and got back to reading:

-You'll find out when you're older-he said

-Great, now you got me intrigued-pouted Nick and focused his sight on the fire instead. The librarian laughed cheerfully and got back to reading. Meanwhile, Nick wasn't reading anymore, but was talking to his new friend, while staring into the fire. He couldn't possibly know that this very friendly librarian will be brutally murdered on the night of Von Greim's betrayal by someone he thought he loves...

As Nick was staring into that fire now, he suddenly felt something going in his direction and dodged to the left. He looked at the column he was standing near. There was a burn trace in it, but it let out a characteristic smell. "Lightning Dust? What the hell?" he thought to himself. After that he looked in the direction from where the projectile came.

Someone was standing on the Griffin statue above the door. It was a woman with very straight shoulder-length white hair, in a mask of a Griffin. She was wearing an orange outfit that consisted of a uniform, an orange cape, tight brown pants and black boots on a high heel. She held a staff with a yellow Dust crystal in her hand and was looking directly at Nick:

-You missed-said Nick

-Next time you won't have the luxury of luck, macho-replied the woman

-Ah, you're wearing a Griffin mask, so you must be...Countess Iaranja?

-You're quite smart for a macho

-Okay, what's it about? Why are you calling me a macho?

-You've managed to kill our dear Alhambra and you're responsible for our boss's current looks. It takes a lot of guts to do that

Iaranja sat down on the Griffin's head and started to dangle her legs in the air without any meaning:

-Do you have a girlfriend?-she asked

-And if I do?-Nick replied with a question. He didn't want to tell Iaranja about his matrimonial status

-I'll make your poor better half a deal-the Countess replied and snapped her fingers

Nick could smell energy of the Hexmen signs around him, but something seemed a little bit off. It seemed as if there was way too much energy circling the library. As if there were multiple signs launched, but there weren't any detonated ones:

-When you were gone, I turned this library into an entertainment hall-Iaranja said-my research made a breakthrough, I managed to patent a way to unleash multiple semblances at once and disguise them as invisible runes. Just like in Yrden's case, now every sign can be hidden in an object! You make one false move, Hexman, and it's going to cost you your life. There's a reason men from Vacuo used to call me "the catastrator"!

Nick then looked carefully in front of him. He couldn't see a thing that could show presence of a sign but for some reason he felt like he needs to be cautious. Just in case, though, he stared at the Countess for a short time. He thought at some point that she's smiling. That immediately gave him a thought:

-Eh, you're bluffing! There's no way you could plant so many undetonated signs without turning into a Grimm in the process-said Nick and straightened his back

-Don't be so sure. Overconfidence was the thing that killed the best, including your father-Iaranja raised her finger

Nick then got pissed off. He grabbed a hold of one of his swords and rushed forward towards the passage between the bookstands. But when his foot touched the carpet, he noticed a red glow coming from the ground:

-Checkmate-said Iaranja with derision and snapped her fingers

The red glow exploded into familiar to Nick effect, fire. He was now slowly getting surrounded by flames. The carpet was being consumed, smoke was getting unbearable. Nick was running out of ideas on how to escape the situation:

-The combination of wool and silk in this carpet makes it highly vulnerable to fire. That's why it was close to the fireplace. So that if someone is stupid enough to storm the fortress, they'll have another thing coming

"That's right. Another thing coming..." thought Nick and jumped when the fire was too close to him. He then remembered the fight with Centipedra at Beacon and how he managed to save Blake by gliding on his coat. That's what he did this time. He tightly grabbed the edges of his coat and straightened them, turning the coat into something like a hang-glider. And with the heat below him coming from the Igni Countess Iaranja detonated he was now rising up higher and higher. Even though the smoke was making him cough, he now had a destination, which was one of the windows in the library.

But when he got closer to it, Iaranja just laughed. Right before he was about to grab the knob of the window, a bright blue glow appeared on it, shaping a familiar symbol. It was the symbol of Aard. Nick's mouth opened wide:

-I don't recommend it-the Countess said and raised her fingers as if she wanted to snap them-every window in this room is infused with Aard. If you pull this knob, Aard will knock you back to the other window, to another Aard, and so on, like a Pinball ball

Nick jumped away from the window and straightened his coat more, trying to glide onto the nearest bookstand. As he was moving forward, the smoke was getting thicker:

-If we don't open a window we're gonna choke from the smoke!-yelled Nick

-So what?! I live and I die to serve the man who saw hope in me while others thought I was just a dumb girl expelled from Signal because she was too weak! If I have to die, so be it. But I won't stop until I drag you to hell with me!

-Not everyone sees you as a weakling!-Nick yelled back-You've already done so much for the Griffins, you don't need to prove another point!

-The Griffins were the ones who held me back the most, especially my husband! That lousy librarian thought I can't beat a male sign user because I'm a woman!

After these words Nick managed to land on the top of the bookstand. But when Iaranja spotted him there she started snapping her fingers at incredible speed. Only then Nick noticed that the top of the bookstand has Yrden runes carved in its wood and now it was turning purple. Without hesitation Nick jumped off the bookstand and grabbed a hold of his two guns. He aimed them at Iaranja and shot a couple of bullets. But the Countess dodged a few of them while the rest she blocked with Quen:

-You're not playing dirty with me! I am the one with balls here!

"That sounded disturbing" Nick managed to think before he had to start dodging as Iaranja started to shove lightning bolts in his direction from her staff. The smoke from the burning carpet was getting even thicker. Then the Countess heard a voice in her head:

-Are you ready now?-it asked

-Yes master-replied Iaranja

After these words Nick watched in shock as from his enemy's back a pair of majestic, orange, feathered wings emerge. Unlike in case of Silithas, Iaranja's wings were almost glowing in the darkness of the ruined library. And when they did grow entirely, Iaranja took off her mask and tossed it aside. She looked almost like Alhambra, but her eyes were green:

-Now, Hexman, you were friends with my late husband! I would like to introduce you to his only friends!

She snapped her fingers, releasing a couple of white threads from her hand. After that Nick saw something incredibly bizarre. A few books rose up high in the air and were now resembling birds more than books:

-My advanced Axii can turn inanimate objects into loyal servants! I am a Geist with greatness written all over! Tear him apart, smut section! Rip him to shreds!

Iaranja's servants started to charge at Nick, trying to beat him into a pulp. Disoriented Nicholas was desperately shooting his guns at them, making holes in Blake's favorite reads. Soon they were too close and Van Thorne switched one of the guns into a sword and started to slash the hungry smut books. At some point he got way too into it and in his rage he cut every book from the smut collection into pieces. When the bloodthirsty paper hit the ground returning to its previous form, Nick felt incredible enthusiasm:

-Now THAT'S a katana!-he yelled while swinging his sword

But his enthusiasm didn't last for long. Soon he realized he lost sight of Iaranja somewhere in that battle. The Countess, however, had other plans for him.

She suddenly leaped from one of the bookshelves and grabbed Nicholas by the neck. She grabbed him up, closer to her actually pretty ugly face and flew with him across the room, away from the door and the Griffin statue, towards the burning carpet and the thick smoke. Nick started choking, Iaranja wasn't bothered by the fact that she can die as well. When they both were directly above the center of the fire, she tightened her grip around the Hexman's neck. She looked at him with derision and smirked:

-Like I said, macho-she laughed-you can't seduce this widow

-Have you...ever...read...Garrett's...diary?-Nick tried to say as he was choked by the smoke and Iaranja's hand

-I don't read smut!-the Countess yelled and loosened her grip as if she wanted to toss Nick into the fire

-Too bad-Nick said without trouble-he used to say, "if you can't get her with your charm..."

Suddenly Iaranja felt cold pain in her stomach. She looked down to see a sword piercing her. It was Nick's sword:

-"...Make up for it with a big thing"-said the Hexman and smirked

Iaranja was shocked as life was fading away from her. The wings on her back started to lose feathers and the Aard she infused the windows with disappeared. But the carpet was still burning. In this dire situation it was Nick who took his sword out of her and kicked her in the head, dropping her onto the burning carpet. But he refused to make sure if she's dead. Instead he stretched his hands and used his coat to glide safely to the door to the next room. Before he pulled the doorknob, he pulled a hidden lever inside the Griffin statue, which triggered secret fire prevention systems to slowly put down the fire on the carpet. Iaranja, the Countess of the orange Griffin, the traitor of the Griffin school, was no longer in that fire. She was burned alive...and now gone. Nicholas didn't look back. He just pressed the doorknob and walked out of the library, disgruntled and full of grief.

Now he landed in an empty room. It would've been empty, if there wasn't a staircase in the middle of the room, which led down to the dark dungeons of the fortress, where the school of Cat trained their ruthless assassins. Nick knew way too well, what the dungeons are like...way too well...

-Mummyyyyyyyyyy!

Nicholas was whimpering like a beaten dog from the dark, cold and humid maze of the dungeon. He was curling up on the freezing ground, quietly sobbing, slowly losing hope he is ever going to find a way out. But just when he was about to close his eyes and forever sink in the darkness, he suddenly saw a light:

-Nick, sweetie, where are you?-a familiar female voice called out from a couple of meters away

-Mommy...-Nick's eyes filled up with tears...but he didn't find enough strength to get up. His head bluntly hit the floor and he passed out.

Yennefer found him in that state. She only knew he wasn't dead because he was instinctively still shaking from cold. Upon seeing him, she immediately grabbed a hold of him and even though he felt a bit heavy on her she walked out with him from the maze of the dungeons. When they finally managed to do so, there were already people gathered in the empty room. A couple of Cats were hanging out in there, sitting on the floor playing cards or leaning against a wall and smoking cigarettes. Among the people awaiting Yennefer and Nicholas was Sihill and chamberlain Von Greim. When he saw Badwitch's face covered in tears he immediately ran up to her:

-Madame Yennefer, is everything alright with sir Nick?-he asked

-He's alive, but I could feel fever radiating from him for a mile-Nick's mother replied-put him in bed this instant and toss a few more sticks into the fireplace!

-Right away, madame!-the chamberlain responded, took Nick from Yennefer's hands and ran off with him through a safe passage in the dungeons towards the middle tower

Badwitch, upon seeing her husband, suddenly got red from anger on her face. He was standing in the crowd of bystanders from the Cat school accompanied by the school's master. Yennefer walked up to him, blood was boiling in her veins:

-What kind of father puts his own son in the middle of a dungeon for deranged serial killers?!-she yelled as she made her way to her husband

-Be quiet-Sihill replied, not looking her in the eyes-you're going to trigger the Cats...

-I do not fucking care if I trigger them or not!-Yennefer said through her teeth-our son is not our slave, especially yours. You are not allowed to try and kill him, do you fucking understand?!

-Training in the dark dungeons is a part of every Cat's life...-Sihill was now looking his wife in the eyes

-Our son is still a child! He hasn't graduated the Griffin school yet and therefore he shouldn't be around the dungeons at all!

-Yennefer...

Nick's mother then didn't contain her anger. She raised her hand and every Cat in the room heard as the Grandmaster's wife smacks one of his cheeks. Yennefer's eyes were filled with tears, but she was still pissed off:

-What kind of father lets a child die, Sihill? We're not supposed to be monsters, yet you make us look like ones. To do this to your own son...because of you, he's not like other Hexmen. It's all your fault!

Sihill didn't respond, he just stood silent with his head looking down on the ground. He put his hand on his cheek and when Yennefer walked away, he slowly followed her. The Cats were just looking at them, shocked. Some people were whispering how they would hit Yennefer back, but when the master heard such voices he locked the gossipers in the dungeons for the whole night with both of their legs broken.

As Sihill and Yennefer were walking across the courtyard to their tower, they noticed a familiar figure walking up towards them:

-Ah, Schwartz-Yennefer said-did you do as I said?

-Of course, madame. Sir Nicholas does have fever, just like you feared. But he feels much better now...

-Very well-Yennefer replied

-I almost forgot. Before he went to sleep, he asked me to inform you, that he wants to apologize for his mischievous behavior-Von Greim added

-What behavior?-Badwitch was confused

-Sir Nicholas, he...he claims he walked into the dungeons by himself and on purpose, to skip the graduation exam in the Griffin school...

Yennefer's mouth opened wide. Sihill just stood there, dumbfounded. Once he pulled himself together, he slowly bowed to Von Greim:

-Thank you for the information, Schwartz-said the Grandmaster, forgiving his wife in his mind for her outburst. He wasn't directly responsible for Nick's state, but he felt like an irresponsible father for not looking after Nick with care and thus knew that he deserved that slap from Yennefer. Not once has he thought bad of her during that. He loved her too dearly.

And now Nick was standing in the place where he had his biggest childhood trauma that didn't involve the Grimm. But, naturally, the place was quiet like a tomb. And that bothered the Hexman as he was walking down the staircase into the dark, humid maze of the dungeons of the school of Cat.

Somebody was lurking in the shadows, noticing the prey. It closed the door, so it had nothing to lose. The shadowy figure then smiled to itself as it was slowly focusing the sight and smell.

Nicholas immediately drew his sword and hid the blade behind his elbow, just like the Cats did. He knew they could see one glow from a blade from a hundred yards. He wanted to use Igni to lighten his path, but the fight with Iaranja made him tired and his Hexman sight didn't work as well because the darkness was too overwhelming in this dungeon, that's how it was designed.

But with his nose Nick could smell a different presence in the maze. Someone who definitely hasn't showered in a long time. Someone who could be...a Cat:

-You really should've spent your contract money on some shampoo-Nick said out loud to the darkness

He didn't hear any verbal response. Instead he heard something from right behind the corner. It was a slow heartbeat, accompanied by an even slower unsheathed sword. Of course, Nick didn't see the blink of the blade. "I'm definitely up against a Cat" he thought and tightened the grip on his sword. And then he suddenly heard almost quiet footsteps. Almost...

He jumped out with fury in his eyes and threw a vicious cut. He only felt a short blow of the wind and quick steps which were now echoing throughout the whole maze. After a while, though, he heard the steps again but they were behind him. In a blink of an eye he turned around and covered his head when a slightly curved, shining blade clashed with his sword. Nick recognized the shape. It was a Wakizashi, a sword perfect for a Cat.

He only saw the face of his opponent for a short time, but the enemy definitely had a cat mask on the face. He only managed to notice, that behind this mask, on the long white hair there is a pair of pointy ears. "So I'm fighting a Faunus" Nick thought as he was moving away from the spot where he clashed with the unknown opponent:

-I am cat, you are mouse-suddenly Nick heard a voice in the darkness. He assumed it belongs to his opponent, but it seemed like he's fighting a woman again.

The voice of Nick's female enemy sounded primitive and she clearly seemed to have difficulty saying some words. Van Thorne was getting suspicious about his opponent's origins:

-Nice Wakizashi you were swinging back there-he said, trying to start a chat with his enemy to locate her by the voice

-Tukabramat

-What?

-My name-the voice of Nick's opponent said-what your name is?

-Nick

-Nicko...me likes it-said Tukabramat

-Well, I'm flattered. But that doesn't mean we have to date now, right?

-Uh hu hu hu-a menacing laughter echoed throughout the corridor of the dungeons-is funny

-Okay, cut the shit out, Cat. What is up with that accent?

Suddenly Nick felt a wind blow at his back and immediately jumped forward. He turned back and fired a couple of rounds from his pistol, but he didn't hear the bullets hit anything but air and the nearby wall:

-Bad people-Tukabramat's voice echoed

-What bad people?

-Cats...

-What are you talking about?

-No spirit of Cat-Tukabramat said-just hate

-What hate? What do you mean?-Nick was disoriented

But then he realized something. Long ago, the school of Cat was accused of illegally kidnapping stray children and forcing them to become a part of their league of assassins. The school, of course, denied everything, but what if...

What if there was truth in these accusations? What if the school of Cat kidnapped at least one stray child in their existence? That would mean that the assassins weren't slaughtered in a gruesome way by Von Greim and the Grimm but by...

This child. The stray child they took against its will, training it in the shadows, making it hate them more than anything in the world. That would mean that Tukabramat was waiting for Von Greim's betrayal. That the day she massacred those who were supposed to be her brothers and sisters was actually her liberation:

-I know who you are-said Nick once he finished his realization

-They all said so-Tukabramat responded and let out a laugh-but they know nothing

-I know the school of Cat kidnapped you-said Nick-there wasn't a Faunus applying to the assassins in a long time, yet you seem like you could outplay them all

-I did the outplay-said the treacherous Cat and laughed yet again

Because of that laugh Nick located where the voice was coming from now. Sneaky Tukabramat was actually on the ceiling. Van Thorne pointed his gun above him and fired a couple of rounds. He then heard wind blowing from a jump and quick footsteps:

-Gotcha!-he yelled and charged his swordWhen the wind blew again, Nicholas jumped. For a short time he saw a blink of the blade but instead of blocking he attacked himself. He clashed swords with Tukabramat, but this time he kicked her. He got her in the stomach and so she hit the ground:

-Ugh!-she groaned

Nick landed back on the ground. The hit Tukabramat received from him made him feel strong again. He snapped his fingers and launched a short stream of Igni into a nearby wall, remembering he could feel a small torch there.

Indeed there was one and it immediately caught fire, lighting Nick's path a little. In that weak light, he could now see exactly how his opponent looks like.

Tukabramat was slightly shorter than Iaranja. She was the Countess of the yellow Cat, a traitor of that school. But now that Nick was sure that the Cats were doing unethical things like kidnapping her, he kind of started to feel sorry for her. But it immediately went away when Tukabramat's 8 fox tails suddenly shot out at Nick and made him trip over:

-Exposed! Exposed! Must retreat!-the fox Faunus was groaning in desperation as she tried to run away from the light of the torch

-Oh no you don't!-yelled Nick and jumped after Tukabramat into the shadow. He caught one of her tails and made a pirouette to get in front of her. Once he managed to do so, he was in the darkness again. But Tukabramat awakened her stray child instincts when Nick caught her so now, instead of strategically playing out her game, she grabbed a hold of her Wakizashi and started to dance with that blade, trying to wound Nicholas.

The Hexman was deflecting blows from Tukabramat, but he had to wait for his moment. At some point the assassin jumped, but Nick was prepared for that. Before the Countess could grab the ceiling, Nick violently pulled one of her tails, making her painfully hit the ground. That was the dirty trick both Cats and Vipers were taught to use. And now Tukabramat was on the ground.

When Nick walked up to her, wanting to plunge his knife into her back he suddenly noticed something strange. She...was weeping. She curled up on the floor from the attack Nick did and seemed defenseless. At first Nick wanted to kill her, but then he felt bad again. All because of the school of Cat.

But when Tukabramat noticed Nick was about to put his sword away, she smirked and drew her Wakizashi yet again. She jumped at Van Thorne, trying to stab him. But Nick realized the danger on time and blocked his enemy's blow. After that, he lost all mercy for this individual. He jumped behind the fox Faunus and made a few violent slashes with his swords, cutting off all the tails of the Faunus. She screamed in an inhuman way and fell down on the ground, crippled:

-You know, I really try to be a gentleman-said Nick as he was walking away from the bleeding out Tukabramat

-Monster!-she yelled

-I learned a long time ago, that a female body is sacred. And that if you wish to ever lay a hand on it, it should be out of care, maybe love. And I really try to respect that rule, believe me...

-Monster!

-I never hit a girl before in my entire life. Even if she's a bitch, she deserves to be treated with respect because there is a likable lady behind the tits and the mean spirit

-Monster!

-You keep calling me that, but that's a huge generalization. Believe me, if there was any other way to deal with these issues, I would be more than happy to go for it

And then Tukabramat saw a light. It was a light of the torch Nick lit up earlier. Now he was standing above her and he had it in his hand:

-I really don't have any personal issues with you or Iaranja-said Van Thorne-but you both stand on my way to Von Greim. And I don't forgive those, who aid a traitor. But partially, I can see that you've never viewed him as that. In fact, I can see that you suffered all your life. Consider me doing this to you a favor, a new liberation

-Monst...

Tukabramat didn't finish because Nick quickly aimed his gun at her and put a bullet in her forehead. She dropped on the ground, dead. The traitor of the Cats (?) was now dead in front of Nick. But he couldn't bear to look at her corpse. He put the torch near her clothes to light her on fire and while tightly holding the torch in his hand he walked away from where he fought the Countess, towards the mess hall, out of these traumatic dungeons of the school of Cat.

With a torch Nick found a way out of the dungeons easily. Yet again it was a staircase, but there was no door this time. So when Nick could see light of the moon in the distance he immediately tossed away the torch and ran up to the exit. When he left the place, he landed in the mess hall, officially called "the canteen". That's the place all the Hexmen liked. Here, schools stopped being schools for around 2 hours each day, and instead all Hexmen were friends. Even Cats and Vipers weren't their usual selves there, in the mess hall.

Hexmen were having breakfast at homes but occasionally they would bring it with them to the campus and eat it there instead. Lunchtime was when there usually were crowds in the mess hall. There was always a stall with a buffet at the left edge of the canteen. Usually Hexmen were eating something that was delivered to the campus from restaurants or cheap bars in Gwynbleidd, they rarely ate anything outside of their village. The most common thing to have for lunch was a kebab from southern district. Students would always have a few choices for the kebab before they were walking away from the stall with the steaming hot snack. The cook, if you could call him like that (he was actually more of a delivery guy), would always put too much sauce in a kebab for any Hexman and by the time the lunchtime ends most Hexmen were filling the rubbish bin with napkins they used to wipe off the white and red stains. The worst thing that could happen would be to have a white sauce stain on your pants. And don't even get me started on the jokes that some Hexmen were making if they noticed one of the female students with white sauce stains on their cheeks.

Even though the atmosphere was juvenile, the mess hall was the only place for Hexmen to act like that. Occasional food fights, terrible jokes by the table, even the rubbish bin filled with dirty napkins, all of this was a part of that memorable atmosphere. But now, when Nick was looking around the mess hall...all the charm was gone. Tables were flipped on the ground like barricades for so long they were getting covered with cobwebs, chairs were lying around in random places, the rubbish bin was emptier than a Grimm's asshole and the window where the delivery guy was pouring too much sauce didn't let out any smell. The mess hall...became a literal mess.

Van Thorne only had one particular memory with this place and it didn't even happen during lunchtime, but during the breakfast...

Nick was sleepy that day. He didn't have any sugar yet so naturally he had no strength. He was sitting with a couple of his classmates at the mess hall, sipping cocoa from his cup. It wasn't long, however, until someone sat with him and the rest, completely excited:

-Hey guys, you remember that Vytal match we watched last week?-asked the newcomer

-Hell yeah dude. That Nikos chick kicked the living shit out of that fag from Vacuo-one of the students replied

-Alright, alright. So I was at Hexagon before entering the campus today and the Shopkeep said he's got some merchandise from that particular event. Naturally, I bought myself a festive stamp...and this!

After these words the student rapidly put something on the table. Everyone focused their sight on the object, including Nick. And even though at first he looked with sleepy eyes, he immediately felt more alive when he noticed what was on the object:

-Dude, where did you get those?!-one of the students yelled

-I said, we got merchandise at Hexagon. That includes this cereal. "Pumpkin Pete's"...I really hope they're not made of actual pumpkins...

-Forget the damn cereal! Look over here!-yelled another student and pointed his finger. Nick's grin grew incredibly wide. On the box he could see the beautiful girl from Vytal, the best fighter he ever saw live on TV, Pyrrha Nikos.

Without looking at others he gently took the box with cereal in his hands and stared a little bit longer into the gorgeous green eyes of the winner of last Vytal:

-Hey, Van Thorne! That's my cereal!-said the student who was showing off earlier

-Don't ruin the moment, just look at his face. Look how he's staring into a cereal box...-said another student

-Awwwwww!-everyone from Van Thorne's class by the table groaned upon seeing Nick staring with the widest smile ever into the picture of Pyrrha

Nick was feeling butterflies in his stomach making him feel warmth. He stared into the box when he noticed that everyone around him is dead quiet. When he looked around, everyone was looking at him almost bursting into laughter:

-Oh goodie, little Nicky is having a first crush!-suddenly one of the students said

-That looked so romantic!

-Alright, well...that was awkward-said Nicholas finally as he was returning the cereal box to its rightful owner-could I have the box for a moment later, though?

-Ummmm...sure-replied the guy who bought the cereal

After breakfast Nick stayed a little longer in the mess hall. Everyone else was already leaving for their lessons, the hierarchy of schools was about to start shining its daily light. But Nick was focused on something else. The cereal was gone, but it was the box that concerned him. He was very focused on his movements so that they're precise. He was cutting out the photo of the red-haired girl from the box with a pair of scissors. For him, this task was a bit intense. And just when he was done and was about to put the photo in his wallet, he suddenly heard someone yelling from the distance:

-Nicholas, come on! We're gonna be late for Slaughterology!

-Oh yes yes...I'll be right there!-said Nick, put the cut out photo of Pyrrha in his wallet and ran off quickly towards where the voice came from, the courtyard.

Suddenly Nick heard rustling somewhere in the distance. If this was still a dungeon, Van Thorne would think someone tries to sneak up on him. Maybe that person tried to do so. But that failed, because the Hexman didn't even have to listen closely to hear the new opponent:

-Oh come the fuck on! That sneaking up shit stopped being funny like 2 duels ago!-Nicholas yelled

After these words he heard quick steps from behind one of the flipped over tables. Someone jumped from behind it. It was a guy with long white hair (of course), in a mask of a viper, in a green army uniform with a green cape slowly dangling on his back. He didn't have any weapons. Nick noticed a Viper school medallion around this guy's neck:

-You've ruined my entrance-said the stranger

-Well I'm sorry but that was just seriously getting irritating. I mean women, right?-said Nick nonchalantly

-Yep, always sneaky little things-replied the guy and after these words he just stood there, awkwardly swinging his hands

-So what's your name?

-Wyrdd, Count of the green Viper. You're Nicholas, I already know about you...

Now both Nick and the Count stood in awkward silence. But at some point it became irritating for the Hexman:

-Hey, so...you hang out here often?-he asked

-Me? No. Others? Yes. Well...not hang OUT but they literally hang. Look up there-Wyrdd replied and raised his finger

Nick raised his sight at the ceiling of the mess hall and almost fell on the ground. The sight was absolutely horrifying. There were ropes attached to the ceiling, each of them was ending with a circle. And on each ending of each rope, someone was hanging, only dangling from time to time, making the noose around the neck creak menacingly.

Nicholas went completely pale on his face. He has never seen so many dead people before in his life. Even during Lahilla's raid there weren't so many corpses at one place. This was...absolutely horrifying.

But then Wyrdd let out a laugh:

-Magnificent, isn't it?-he said

-That's what you mean by "hanging out"?!-Nicholas was feeling as his natural adrenaline is kicking in

-Precisely-Wyrdd laughed again

-Even for me and William...that's pretty fucked up

-Why thank you for such kind words! Me and Marquess tried our best to make the mess hall suit your taste!

-What?

-Yes, Van Thorne. We've been expecting you. Those three Counts you've killed were merely a warm up. Now, you're going to see the true face of panic!

After these words the sleeves of Wyrdd's uniform started to glow and after a few short seconds he held in his hands two rifles, of course painted green:

-What the hell is that?!-yelled Nicholas

But the Count didn't response. He just squeezed the triggers and when the first bullets started to fly the Hexman dashed to his left and hid behind one of the flipped over tables. "The tables don't seem that thick but I should be safe behind them for a short time" he thought:

-These, my dear friend, are the latest models of Atlesian automatic rifles. They fire poisonous Dust, caliber is 20mm. I also added a few personal touches like scopes, drum mags, wooden butts, automatic reload system, whatever heart desires!

-You're a fucking copycat, Wyrdd! I had automatic reload system in my pistols long before you!

-But I was in conspiracy against the master of Vipers when you were still getting lost in dungeons during Assassination classes with the school of Cat! That makes me your superior officer!

After these words the Count looked up on the ceiling and laughed:

-Hey, Nicholas! What's your biggest crime?

Nick managed to grab a hold of his two guns. "So you want to test my marksmanship? So be it" he thought. After that he heard a shot. Now he wouldn't suddenly go pale on his face again since the shot didn't hit him, but instead something landed right next to him. It was a corpse of one of the hanging people. Nick rapidly crawled away towards a different flipped over table to hide. The face of the person that hit the floor next to him was twisted in pain and fear. Wyrdd was just laughing with his two rifles drawn:

-Having fun yet?-he asked

-You sick fuck!-Nick yelled back

After these words the Hexman tried and tested his luck for the first time. He rose up from his cover and fired a couple of bullets in Wyrdd's direction. The Count responded by dashing to his left and shooting a barrage of bullets from his own weapons. Nick quickly ducked to avoid damage:

-Pfffft-Wyrdd snorted-is that your best? 10 millimeter pistols with yellow Dust? You fight like Iaranja, and I kicked her ass multiple times! Sign will never outrun a bullet!

After that the Count unleashed another series into the ceiling and a few other bodies of hanging people fell on Van Thorne. The Hexman was starting to get pissed off. But instead of lashing out he jumped away quickly towards another flipped over table. He shot a few times without looking from there at Wyrdd. The Count wasn't even phased by these shots:

-Do you know why some of these people got what they deserved? Well mainly because it's too hard to run a village full of primitive idiots who don't understand you for shit! That guy who almost hit you served me a beer without gas, the lady hanging directly above you spilled hot coffee on my finest boots and this guy above me did the worst crime! He didn't address me properly...

-These are not things that deserve capital punishment!-yelled Nick from behind his cover

-But you forget something important! The people of Gwynbleidd are too stupid to run the village by themselves, someone will always have to be in charge here for them. And who would be better for that job than an iron fist?

"Iron...fist...Iron..." these words were flowing through Nick's mind when suddenly he got an idea. He switched mags in his guns. When Wyrdd heard that he laughed yet again (Nick was getting sick of that laughter):

-You're reloading already? I still have a few rounds left but just to be sure I don't stop while I turn you into cheese...

The Count ejected the drum mags from his rifles and when new ones appeared, he flipped them in the air and shoved them directly in their place. But before he could repeat his two rifles, Nick suddenly jumped over the flipped table and fired a couple of rounds at the ceiling:

-Trying to use my trick against me? Not gonna work, buddy!-yelled Wyrdd

-Don't be so sure-Nick smirked

After that the Count repeated both his rifles and was about to start shooting at Van Thorne...

When suddenly he noticed the corpse from his own noose falling towards him. And right when he was about to dash, he suddenly noticed something weird about the corpse. Seeing that made his mask fall off. And when it did, his face was in shock and fear:

-Oh shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit!-he only managed to scream

Bam! The corpse exploded into a fountain of blood. Nick was standing at a safe distance so he wasn't bothered by it. But Wyrdd, on the other hand, was caught in the middle of the explosion. And the body didn't just explode into blood, but also into a few flesh chunks as well. Most of them had broken, pointy remnants of bones in them. And one of them pierced the Count's larynx and was now sticking out of it. He was lying on the ground now, impaled, gurgling blood on the floor which was already stained after the explosion. Nick just walked up to him:

-Now that...that was beautiful...-Wyrdd grunted, trying to smile

Nick showed him some small objects he had in his hand:

-Pressurized Air Dust shells-said Van Thorne-only 12 Liens for a small mag

Wyrdd didn't respond. He just kept smiling:

-I truly hate myself for what I keep doing in this fortress now. I keep killing Hexmen, dammit! The ones who were supposed to be my brothers and sisters in arms!

After these words Nick pointed his gun at Wyrdd's head:

-I'm truly sorry your bloodthirst has never been quenched, Count. And I'm sorry for murdering all of you

Even though Wyrdd was a completely deranged psychopath who just loved killing others for fun, he managed to nod in Nick's direction before he put a fire Dust bullet in his forehead, incinerating him slowly, as if he wanted to say "I forgive you" before he passed away. But even though Nick's empathy towards his victims grew, for Von Greim he still only felt hatred. Because he realized, that his former chamberlain put all these young Hexmen first against his father, then against the rest of Remnant under Lahilla's banner, and now against him in the fortress...just to hide behind their bodies like a coward. With hatred for Von Greim overcoming Nick's senses, tightening the grip on his sword and one of the pistols, he kicked the door open to walk out on the courtyard of the fortress. In the distance he could already see the middle tower, his former home and where that source of all his suffering now resided and watched with his stupid grin how an actual Hexman does regrettable things just to get to him.

The courtyard of the fortress was a hangout spot for two Hexman schools. One of them was Viper school, which trained their marksmanship on the left side of the courtyard. In the meantime, the right side of the courtyard was a training spot for the second most respected Hexman school (after Wolves).

The school of Bear. One of the younger schools in fact, this battalion was formed with a sole purpose of fighting heavy weaponry with heavy weaponry. Bears were known for being very strong, yet slow. They were a complete opposite to what Vipers and Cats were about. Throughout their existence they tried to convince the Grandmaster to improve the infrastructure of the fortress like having co-ed dorms in the Advanced University, starting a school of foreign languages for Gwynbleiddeans and most importantly, building a gym for the Hexmen. But the lack of diplomatic agenda, influence of conservative Wolf School and undercover work of Von Greim didn't allow the Bear School to be remembered that well. Nick walked towards the middle tower closer to the part of the courtyard that was for Bears. He then had a flashback of a memory connected to this place...

-Okay Nick, that's all for today. Remember to never lift your body too high during pushups. It's better to do more and less tiring

The master of Bear school finished his training with Van Thorne. The young Hexman was in a borderline relation with him. He liked him for his ability to motivate but at the same time he was pissing him off when he was bullying students who couldn't keep up with his brutal training schedule.

Lessons of Bear School were called "Tankery" and they involved a lot of PE elements fused with combat training. From time to time, during these lessons, students would play a team sport on the courtyard, usually soccer. Nick was always on the offensive position, so he managed to get a quite good reputation among other students after all the Grimmistics, Signology, Assassination and Slaughterology classes. At that time he was close to graduation exam at the Bear school and his father promised to let him into the Advanced University after that.

So imagine Nick's shock after that one Tankery lesson that completely changed his mind about Von Greim.

It started off simple. Nick's teacher was walking away towards the mess hall while he was taking a breath. The Viper school was also going to the canteen, their lessons ended as well. But when they left someone else approached their side of the courtyard, Nick noticed that with a corner of his eye and immediately had his attention caught. There were two people, Nick recognized them as his father and the chamberlain. They had strangely shaped swords and were taking some strange positions in the middle of the courtyard. Nick leaned onto a nearby wall and slowly peeked from behind it. He then overheard their conversation:

-Don't go easy on me, Sih-said Von Greim

-I have a technique prepared for you today, better be ready-replied Nick's father

-We shall see. My technique is the same, giving you all I've got

-That's not very effective, Schwartz

-One can have dreams, Sihill

That was the first thing that made Nick suspicious. Von Greim has never before addressed his dad with his full name, he was always calling him "Sih" or "Master" if he had to officially act as a chamberlain. But he didn't dwell on that and instead watched as Von Greim and his father prepare their rapiers and take their positions:

-En garde-said Sihill

The tension started to rise. Von Greim seemed prepared as well:

-Êtes-vous prêts...-said the chamberlain

-Allez!-replied Sihill in a rapid way and the duel has begun

Nick was watching in awe as his father and the chamberlain have a fearsome fencing duel on the Viper school's side of the courtyard. For young Van Thorne it was nothing like he's ever seen before. His dad's footwork was swift and he moved like a feather. On the other side was Von Greim, who moved just as swiftly but he was also attacking. These attacks didn't seem like something Nick used to see on combat training. He could see that chamberlain puts some emotions to these hits. And these emotions were negative...

As Von Greim was further trying to catch Vel Gwyhyr with the tip of his rapier, Nick could slowly see his father wearing off. But as he was wearing off with dodging, he started making up for it with offensive tactics. He started to parry Schwartz, sometimes even trying to add a riposte to it. Von Greim seemed to dodge it, but he had a hard time doing so. That allowed Sihill to move on from defensive position to offensive one. And then Von Greim got a bit too cocky with his maneuvers and Sihill used that very well. When chamberlain lunged at the Grandmaster, his opponent just did a feint that landed him behind Von Greim's back. Wasting no time, Sihill hit Schwartz in the back with the handle of his rapier:

-Not bad, but you really need to improve that lunging technique-said Vel Gwyhyr

-Are you sure?-asked Von Greim, smirked and gave Nick's father a sign to look down

The Grandmaster looked down and noticed the tip of Schwartz's rapier touching his tendon:

-Smart move-he complimented him-so it's a draw then, for the first time

After that both Sihill and Von Greim packed their fencing equipment and walked away towards the mess hall. But Nick couldn't help but start to worry about his father. If Von Greim would get any better...that would mean the end of Nick as well...

-You there!

Suddenly Nick heard someone yelling to his right. When he looked over there he was graced with a presence of another Count. As always he had long white hair, but he wore a mask of a Bear on his face, along with a blue uniform and a matching cape. His hands were on his hips:

-Another Count, great! Listen buddy, I don't have time for this shit anymore. I have a score to settle with your boss and I have a couple of friends that need a ride back to Atlas as well as a shit ton of friends expecting my return at Haven, so do me a favor and just get a life because the one you had with Von Greim is over...

-Why, you insignificant speck of feculent scum! How dare you talk to me like that?! I'll have you know I am the Count of justice, Sininen is my name, a blue Bear is in my crest, and I wish to set up a duel with you, a fair one, to avenge my murdered brothers and sisters

-And who do you feel fraternal relations with?-asked Nick and was now slowly walking up to Sininen-is it Alhambra, who slaughtered innocent people to make a legend out of himself? Iaranja, who killed her own husband to prove she's stronger? Tukabramat, who was so traumatized she could never trust anyone again? Or maybe Wyrdd, the deranged psychopath who liked to hang people from the ceiling for fun?

-Why you insolent, ignorant little rat! You're lying!-Sininen yelled back in response

But the Count, immediately after these words, felt pain in his face. Nicholas dashed towards him and straight up punched his mask. That kicked the blue Count away a little bit, destroying the mask in the process. Behind it Nick noticed a pair of amber eyes with narrow pupils. They were filled with blind hatred. After these words the Bear took out his weapon. It was a sledgehammer, entirely gray, with blue circuits circling it on the blunt edges and partially on the handle he was holding. He started to swing it in the air:

-Fight me, fiend!-yelled Nick's opponent

-With pleasure-the Hexman responded and grabbed a hold of his two swords

The duel was hectic. For a Bear, Sininen could keep up quite fast, Nick found it hard to use his own Bear techniques on him. Even though Van Thorne's footwork was allowing him to stay away from the earth shattering blows that this Hexman was doing with his hammer. But naturally at some point Sininen grew tired of that gimmick and used a different tactic. Nick was watching as his opponent's weapon starts transforming, slowly taking the shape of a:

-Oh shit-said Van Thorne-it's a fucking minigun?!

Nick wanted to jump away from the line of fire, but there was no cover nearby. Sininen's gun then started shooting. In desperation Nick snapped his fingers and shielded himself with Quen. As the magical shield was deflecting the blue Dust bullets, Van Thorne was feeling the sign's power weakening. Sininen's gun on the other hand didn't seem like it's going to stop shooting:

-How long can you keep up with your petty sign, villain?-he asked

"I'll show you a villain" Nick thought and crossed his swords together. When he did so, Quen disappeared and the storm of bullets could now shatter him. But instead, Nick started dancing with his swords held firmly by the ropes they were attached to:

-"Wake me up, before you go go..."-Van Thorne was singing as he was slowly approaching Sininen while deflecting all his shots at the same time during his strange choreography

Sininen was clearly shocked. His gun was slowly overheating and he was desperately trying to move back. But he didn't manage to go away too much. Nick got now close enough to use his ranged melee attacks. With the song lyrics proudly leaving his mouth, he started cutting Sininen with his blades, spilling the Count's blood everywhere and staining his beautiful blue uniform. When Nick at some point stopped his terrifying dance he was still singing:

-Take me dancing tonight...I want to hit that hiiiiiiiiiiigh!

When he finished all of that he heard as Sininen drops on the ground. He immediately turned around to him:

-Oh shit I'm sorry!-he yelled

-You...monster...-Sininen was grunting as he was losing a lot of blood

-I seriously didn't think that the dance of blades will have such an effect on you!

-Just...kill me and let's be done with it! I now realize everything, Van Thorne. When you were swinging these blades around I've realized who have I become...

-Are you sure you want this?

-Definitely. I wasn't that good at Tankery anyway...

And after these words Nick switched one of his swords into a gun and fired a fire Dust bullet into Sininen's head, killing him and setting him on fire. "Well...that was quick" the Hexman thought and walked away from the courtyard towards the middle tower. Nothing could stand in his way now...or could it?

The central tower of the Brotherhood's fortress seemed like every other one at first. Made of brick, covered in ivy, but a bit taller than the rest of the complex. It was mostly stairs. There were two infrastructural elements on it. At the very top of the tower there was a finishing piece the size of a small house. That used to be where Nick and his parents lived. First, you'd enter the Grandmaster's office. Inside, you'd find a door deeper inside which led to private chambers. They consisted of 4 rooms: living room, which served as a bedroom for Nick as well, Sihill and Yennefer's bedroom, kitchen with a dining room and a bathroom. The sewerage system in it was leading from the tower directly inside the earth. The living room was where Nick slept on a sofa that was also a bed and practiced his individual skills such as playing instruments, writing and drawing. Kitchen was where Nick ate all the meals on weekends (Yennefer was great at making pasta while Sihill had the best ideas for monthly homemade pizza evenings).

But there were also some other quarters in the tower. Halfway through the staircase towards the Grandmaster's office there were two doors on each side. One was wooden and led to the dorm where Grandmaster's office employees worked. The other one was metal and had a lock attached to it. Nobody was allowed to go through these doors. Everyone could see that there is a room behind them but the windows were completely barred. And when somebody asked Sihill what's behind the door, he'd always just give this mysterious smile and say:

-Something you definitely should stay unaware of...

With his heart beating quite loudly, Nick pushed the door to the middle tower and closed it behind him. He started looking around him. The tower seemed quiet. For Nick it was even getting a bit...too quiet...

Suddenly a purple shape flashed in front of him. He immediately held his breath. "Last time I saw a purple shape I was drugged with oneiric miasma" he thought as he was slowly grabbing a hold of his sword and walking up the stairs.

They were quite tiring. At first Nick didn't have to raise his foot too much to get to the next stair. But for some reason later on they were getting steeper and higher. They were a great endurance test for every Hexman. But Sihill and the school of Bear were actually planning to build an elevator in the place where the two pairs of doors were. But the project was dropped, Sihill never clearly explained why but all Hexmen suspected it might have something to do with the mysterious metal door. Fortunately, nobody was irrational enough to try and open it...until now...

When Nick landed in the place where the two pairs of doors were, he was quite exhausted. His endurance was put even more to the test on these stairs than when he was fighting Sininen. So, naturally, all he could think of was to rest for a bit on the cold floor. He did sit down...but he was leaning on the forbidden metal door...

And suddenly...it moved. Nick's exhaustion immediately went away and his instincts made him jump on his legs. With one push of the door, Van Thorne immediately noticed white smoke coming out. He was quite anxious but with small steps he crossed the doorstep to the forbidden room. After all these years of obedience...he was going to do what he wasn't supposed to. But when he entered the room and the door closed menacingly behind him on its own, something didn't seem right at all.

"This room...it's familiar..."

He then heard crackling of fire somewhere nearby. He looked around and noticed a fireplace. "What is going on? What is this place?" Nick was thinking as he was slowly taking steps. At some point he froze to the ground when he heard voices in the distance. He listened closely, just in case grabbing a hold of one of the guns:

-Remember to keep your finger on all the strings at once-said an unknown female voice

-But it hurts!-replied some childish voice

-But imagine the results later! No pain, no gain, Nicholas...

A gust of smoke flew right in front of Nick, shaping a few things in front of him. First there was something that had a bright spot in its center. It was a fireplace. Then a couch was formed. That Nick recognized as his former bed. And on that couch two human shapes were formed. One of them was a child, possibly around 6 years old, with shoulder-length dark brown hair, while the other one was a grown woman with a head full of grey hair and orange eyes with narrow pupils. Nick immediately put down his gun:

-That's the spot!-said the woman as she and the child were playing along a few chords

Nick was now recognizing the people formed from smoke in front of him. He didn't care anymore about what this room even was. In front of him he could see himself at a very young age. The woman was Valery, his homeroom teacher who taught him things more normal than what Hexmen trained. She was helping him out with his individual education more. She was a Hexwoman from the school of Griffin. Not much is known about her other than the fact that she was a widow after a very noble Hexman, who was her husband, perished during the war with Salem in the battle of Forever Fall. Despite the fact that Valery herself was a very warm person who rarely had mood changes, both Sihill and Yennefer could see that she always remained a grieving widow. She never took off her engagement ring after all. But at that time, to Nick she felt more like:

-Nicky, sweetie, could you come here for a second?-Yennefer's voice could be heard in the distance

-Yes, mum!-Nick replied and put his guitar away. After that he ostentatiously looked at Valery. She only nodded and smiled politely

-Happy birthday, Nick-she said as the young Hexman was walking away. Nick didn't even turn back at her. Now when Nick was watching that through the smoke he felt kind of sorry for Valery. He wouldn't appreciate the fact that she was not just his teacher, but an actual part of his family.

As little Nick left, the smoke changed its shape right in front of the present Nick. Now, instead of his room, there was the dining room. Present Nick could hear his own steps as they run up near the table towards Yennefer, who stood near a counter, behind which there was a kitchen. She was accompanied by an unknown at that time to Nick woman. It was a mature blonde woman with very bright green eyes. Present Nick shed a tear seeing that. It was his first meeting with his auntie:

-Mummy, mummy!-the little Nick squeaked

-Yes hon?-asked Yennefer

-When is daddy coming back?

-Oh, I'm sure he's going to be with us in no time-Yennefer replied and subtly bumped Glynda in the shoulder. The teacher from Beacon was paralyzed from stress, she was completely not prepared to face someone, who was related to her, but she never seen him before. Swallowing saliva in fear, she slowly walked up to little Nick. She was holding her gift for him behind her back. She slowly kneeled before her nephew:

-Hello...-Nick awkwardly said, his eyes staring deeply into his aunt's. He was a bit confused

-Hey, Nicholas...-Goodwitch stuttered

-You know my name?-Nick asked. Glynda only blushed and looked away from her nephew. Hardly containing her tears, with shaking hands she passed the wrapped package to Van Thorne

-F...f...for you-she said, stuttering a lot

Even more confused, young Nicholas took the wrapped gift from Glynda's hands and was about to unwrap it when suddenly Yennefer interfered:

-Now now, let's wait until daddy comes back with the cake-said Badwitch and stretched her hand out to take the gift away from her son

But before she did so, Van Thorne noticed something scribbled with tiny letters on the paper:

-To Nicky from...auntie Glynda?-he read out loud

Goodwitch was feeling tears as they gather in her eyes. She was now shaking without controlling herself:

-Your mummy...is...my...sister...-she stuttered, barely letting out words from her mouth

"Now that I look at it, she clearly felt bad for not seeing me earlier. It's like finding out that she has a nephew was the best news she ever received...I could understand now why is she tearing up like that" the present Nick thought as he was hardly containing his own tears of nostalgia...

-I have an auntie!-the young Nick squealed from joy and jumped on his relative, squeezing Glynda in a hug. But, since Nick was very short as a kid, he ended up landing on Glynda's lap, hardly getting his head towards her shoulder

At first the Beacon teacher was extremely confused, but after that confusion went away and she saw her own sister half-smiling at that reunion, for the first time seeing her smile after such a long time, she returned the hug to Van Thorne:

-Oh, little Nicky...I'm so sorry for all these wasted years...-she quietly said as tears were now leaving her eyes and her embrace on Nick was getting tighter...

The present Nick was now crying as well. All his memories from that day came back to him. Glynda brought him his first pair of glasses as a gift (which he wears to this day). Later on Sihill came back with a cake, which he ordered from a pastry in Vale which was recommended to him by the man he called "Ozzy". Glynda seemed to know who he was talking about, but it wasn't Sihill or her sister who were her center of attention. She immediately fell in love with her nephew, who immediately started treating her like family. When Nick's 6th birthday was coming to an end and Glynda was getting ready to head out of Gwynbleidd, he hugged her one last time and asked if they'll see each other again. Glynda replied, that she'll always remain by Nick's side spiritually and that one day, fate will reunite them yet again...

Nick didn't even move an inch when the smoke started to fade and suddenly from these fading streams a figure in purple outfit emerged. Nick already recognized it. It was the last Count, the one team CRDL mentioned as the most mysterious one who doesn't speak. If he remembered correctly, her name was Murasaki. And right now, he didn't really care that much when the Count suddenly took out a big square shape that looked like a playing card and rapidly swished it, making all the smoke suddenly go inside of the card. Nick just stared at her, his tears slowly stopping to flow:

-You're Murasaki, right?

She only nodded in response. Nick took a better look at her mask. He was now realizing what this thing on her mask is:

-It's a manticore...-Nick said-a monster with many faces...

But he didn't manage to say anything more because then all of a sudden Murasaki raised her leg and kicked Nick with incredible force. Van Thorne flew across the room from which the smoke illusion evaporated and hit the wooden door behind the metal one. That knocked him unconscious...

For some time Nick was completely knocked out. He didn't know what was happening around him, he was just embracing the sleep as he heard crackling of fire nearby...

"Wait, what?!"

Crackling of fire. Again! Van Thorne knew he can't stay knocked out anymore. From what he's been through so far this fire could mean either a nightmarish flashback, inferno or...

His sofa. He was lying on his sofa. The one that could turn into a bed. And that fire, it was the fireplace he had in his room. And to his right there was the window of his childhood dreams about the world beyond Gwynbleidd.

It would all feel nostalgic...if it weren't for the shape standing near the fireplace.

One of them was of course Murasaki. She was holding a card with a "Joker" in the air and she wasn't wearing her manticore mask anymore. She had white hair tied in two ponytails and, unlike other Counts, she was actually quite pretty. But all her beauty was gone when Nick noticed her eyes. That was because instead of eyes she had holes with flames in them and they were almost as bright as the fireplace in the room.

There was also another person in the room, sitting in an armchair. That person had a mask on...and Nick already knew who that is. He was about to get up from the sofa...but then the man in the armchair rapidly pointed his hand to his right and a revolver appeared in his hand. Without hesitation, he fired a bullet from it. It reached Murasaki, piercing her skull and dropping her dead on the ground. It was a fire Dust bullet so the dead Count was already incinerating. That both surprised and shocked Nick to the point he slowly laid back on the sofa:

-So...-said Von Greim from his armchair-we're reunited at last...and nobody interrupts us

-Did you have to do that here? You had to kill your own associate where I used to sleep?

-Murasaki was already a lost cause. She lost her voice when she saw a Grimm for the first time back in Kuroyuri. She made a bet with a certain demon, which involved her sacrificing her eyes for the sake of her voice coming back. Well guess what? She found her voice useless and I had to restore her eyesight

-That's sad, but...why are you telling me this?

-Murasaki was a Hexwoman from the school of Manticore. It was a secret school hidden even from you by your father. Their task was to make sure demons don't interfere in our war with the Grimm, but also make sure Hexmen follow the rules of balance. Do you know who was also collaborating with our little exorcists here in Gwynbleidd?

-How am I supposed to know?

-Somebody directly linked to the Brotherhood's victory in the war they fought...

-You fought in this war yourself, Von Greim!

-I WAS in this war but I didn't fight, not against my own sister. It was someone else...someone directly linked to your closest relative...

-Auntie Glynda?

-You're almost there. It is someone from Beacon Academy...

-Ozpin

Von Greim rapidly stood up from his armchair:

-Bingo!-he yelled cheerfully

-But what do you even need Ozpin for?

-And who do you think has the seal of conjunction if not the man who used it in the first place?

Nick's eyes went wide. He realized what was Von Greim's plan all along:

-You're insane!-yelled Van Thorne

-Am I? Just because I love my sister so dearly I'd go through fire for her if I have to?

-You'd literally make a hole in two mirroring dimensions, risking an enormous invasion of Grimm just so you could be a happy family again?! Do you even know how many lives you took so far?

-Necessary casualties, Van Thorne...

-My parents' deaths were necessary to you?!

-They were responsible for what happened to Salem! When it turned out she had magical potential and couldn't maintain the balance I begged Sihill, Yennefer and the master of Manticores to help her. But they preferred to exile her from our village and cause the war with her in the first place!

-Look, I'm sorry for what happened to her! But you're not going to achieve your goal by slaughtering everyone!

-Of course not. I had powerful friends...and you, of course

-Me?

Von Greim then gripped the tip of his mask and pulled it. The mask did come off, but a bit slower than the masks of Counts and once it did, Von Greim's breath got more...asthmatic.

It turned out the traitor still had reminders from his duel with Nick all these years ago. A part of his face was covered in burn scars, the eye was partially burned. The hand that wasn't on the mask was partially limp and the mask itself didn't turn out to be there just to hide Von Greim's face. It was also his oxygen apparatus, a small pipe could be seen attached to the inside of the mask which led to the rest of the contraption:

-I have waited years, connected to your mind, expecting you to lead me to my goal...but we both failed!-Von Greim's voice was much worse without his mask. Raspy, harsh and very cold...

-What are you even talking about?!-Nick was getting creeped out, slowly grabbing a hold of his gun

-That is my semblance! I connected myself to your soul, observed your every move, every breath...and sometimes interfered in it

Nick didn't keep his cool. He grabbed the gun tightly and aimed it at Von Greim's asthmatic face:

-It was you! All these years, you fucking monster...you used me for your own gain! Even Seraphimovich didn't deserve such gruesome death as...that!

Von Greim didn't answer that. He suddenly vanished for a second and after a split second he appeared right next to Nick shoving his gun at his temple:

-Goodbye, Nicholas-he said. He already had his mask back on

But Nick managed to move his head away in the nick (hehe) of time, but the sound of Von Greim's gun firing still had an impact on his ears. For some time he could hear ringing in his ears and when he finally pulled himself together, the traitor was no longer in the room. But the window was opened. Nick knew that there was only one spot Von Greim could run off to:

-I won't let you get away, never again!-yelled Nick as he was climbing up the top of the tower

When Nick finally landed on top of the rooftop, the wind blew stronger. Right in the middle of the area stood Von Greim, his cape was waving with each gust. Next to him, Nick spotted familiar faces, all tied up and with their mouths gagged with flex tape (I'm not memeing it up here, this is for dramatic reason).

Ciel, Penny, Neon, Flynt, Grizaj, Daisy, team CRDL, even the poor Shopkeep...they were all tied up by Von Greim, stuck on the rooftop during this terrible gale. Nick was both mad and confused. Von Greim just stood there with his saber drawn and was swinging it around with finesse:

-So which one do you want me to kill first?-he asked, trying to be louder than the singing wind

-Get your filthy paws off them!-yelled Nick and pointed his gun at the traitor

-What was that? The blue one? Okay, so be it!-Von Greim yelled and raised his saber after dashing right behind Ciel

Nick immediately fired a bullet from his golden gun, but it didn't hit Von Greim. The traitor, instead, cut through the air and deflected the bullet. After that he dashed away from the prisoners and started to slowly walk in Nick's direction:

-You're trying to get me, a far more experienced Hexman than you, with such a peashooter? Unforgivable!

-Hey, asthmatic fuck! How about a bigger caliber?!-some voice yelled from a distance

-What?! Who is that?!-Von Greim yelled, surprised

Suddenly the rooftop started to tremble a little and all of a sudden the tiles right next to Nick burst in the air and someone landed next to him. It was William:

-Ah, you...-Von Greim's surprise went away

But right after that Vengh stretched his hand out, exposing his rifle:

-Not just me, shithead! I brought a couple of friends!

The cyborg squeezed the trigger and a barrage of bullets left the Fat Kim and went straight in Schwartz's direction. He was swinging the blade in the air, still deflecting the bullets, but this time he definitely had a hard time doing so:

- _"QUE MIERDA?!"_ -he was screaming as he was getting worked up and his breathing was getting out of control

At some point William stopped:

-Are you fucking mad?!-Nick suddenly yelled at the cyborg

-What?

-You burst through the surface of the rooftop on a blind spot and you fire a barrage of bullets without even aiming. You could've hurt the wrong person! It could've been me or our friends

-Correction, these are YOUR friends. All MY friends are on me...and you're welcome

-How did he even find you?!-yelled Nick

-It's a long story...-William replied

-Who could that be so late at night?-asked Oro as he was opening the front door of his apartment

Once the huntsman did open the door he was graced with someone's presence. He didn't recognize the man who was standing there but the rest of the crew inside immediately shouted out the guest's name:

-General Ironwood? Sir, what happened?-asked Penny

-We have a problem-replied the guest-a giant swarm of Lancers has been spotted in Gwynbleidd's area, we must evacuate!

-But sir, Nicholas went to the fortress, we can't go without him!-said Ciel

-I've already informed mr. Van Thorne. Let's not waste any more time. We'll get rid of these Lancers and then you're going to be transported back here to finish your personal task

The entire crew followed Ironwood out of Grizaj's apartment. He was leading them through a row of houses and towards the fortress. At some point, William felt insecure:

-Ironwood, where exactly is the airship?-he asked

-Beyond the forest, to the north. If we get there fast enough, we'll be able to spot the Queen Lancer easier

-Computer, has there been any Atlesian airship arriving in the area since yesterday?-William whispered, giving out a command

After a couple of bleeps from his system, the computer's robotic voice softly replied:

-No airships left their landing spots since 2 days ago...

"I knew it" William thought to himself as he was grabbing a hold of his rifle.

But then suddenly "Ironwood" turned back at the people following him and took something out:

-It's a trap!-William yelled

But that was all he managed to do for the rest when suddenly the object in fake Ironwood's hands let out a gigantic stream of white smoke, covering everyone except for the cyborg who managed to shoot a few blind bullets. When it was gone, so was everyone...except for William. When Vengh looked to his right, he noticed a shape with a glowing object in hand that looked like a playing card, an ace of spades to be precise. The shape was wearing a purple outfit and it was actually a woman in a manticore mask...

-Warning! Grimm presence nearby!-Computer suddenly alarmed the cyborg

-Lancers?!

-Ratiguns, five minutes to the northern east

-Northern east? But that's where the fortress is...oh shit!

-Well...isn't this...a cute reunion!-yelled Von Greim, seeing Nick and William arguing. The traitor's prisoners started to fidget as he was again trying to approach them

-Do you mind?-Nick looked back at William

-Not at all. He's all yours-the cyborg replied as he was scanning Von Greim

Vengh moved a little to the side. Ciel was yelling, trying to break through that flex tape and make her voice reach William, she wanted him to untie them. But William just couldn't be bothered. Instead he took a seat on the rooftop, took out a wooden tobacco pipe and put one of its edges in his mouth, preparing himself for a smoking ritual. After that the computer finished scanning Von Greim and William yelled:

-Aim for the breath!

-What the fuck is that supposed to mean?!-yelled Nick when his sword clashed with Von Greim's saber

As Von Greim was pushing his blade towards Van Thorne, the good Hexman noticed a contraption attached to the traitor's belt. "Gotcha now" he thought as he put all his strength to push Schwartz off him and end this clash of swords. Once Von Greim was a few meters away from Nick, he quickly took out one of his guns and aimed it at the breathing apparatus. When he fired his bullet at it he was shocked...

The bullet actually hit Von Greim. He didn't manage to cut on time and he started to suffocate. His asthmatic breath was now out of control and he was additionally coughing as he was running around in desperation:

-Ahahahahahahaha!-Nick laughed-that was way too easy!

"No, something's not right" William thought as he bit the tobacco pipe harder. He enhanced his cybernetic eye's vision and looked closer at the suffering Von Greim. He was struggling with something in his hands. It wasn't his gun or the saber. To William, this shape was familiar. It looked like one of these things Merlot used to add poisonous genes to Creeps on his island...a syringe:

-Nicholas, watch out!-the cyborg yelled, trying to get to Nick who was overflowing with joy after supposedly killing his arch nemesis

But then Von Greim, with last bits of strength, managed to stab his carotid artery with the syringe. All his prisoners shuddered and weird things started happening to the traitor...

His asthmatic breath was rebalancing and all the earlier suffocations were being replaced with maniacal laughter. Nick immediately stopped expressing his joy and looked towards Von Greim with rage burning inside him about the fact that he didn't die yet:

-Thank you, Nicholas! You've freed me from the suffering that was this metal piece of trash!-yelled Schwartz and started to unplug his breathing apparatus. He took off his mask, dropped the broken respirator on the ground and his stiff arm suddenly started to convulse. Nicholas was slowly losing confidence, the tied up prisoners were shaking from fear and cold even more...

-Warning! Grimm presence detected!-William's computer signalized

-Crap! What species is it this time?-the cyborg asked

-Unidentified. However, the Grimm energy seems to be radiating a minute away to your northern west from this individual

Yes, Von Greim injected himself with a vial of Grimm DNA he hid in his cape and now...he was turning into the one Grimm that particularly terrifies people, especially Hexmen. This species, known as the "Cursed", is basically a Hexman who didn't manage to maintain the balance and is now turning into a humanoid full-time Grimm. It was the species the school of manticore was fighting.

But with Von Greim it went a bit...different.

When Nick looked closer at him after a few minutes, Von Greim was not wearing his shirt or the cape. His right arm was covered in shadowy matter. It wasn't stiff anymore, moving perfectly like a healthy arm. As it progressed from the hand to the shoulder, Nick could see a few pieces of the Grimm's bone armor here and there as well as red glowing lines where his burn scars on that arm used to be. Before he injected himself, he also couldn't walk properly. Now Schwartz had both his legs in a perfect state but somehow didn't think about taking off his pants. Mostly though, it was his face that changed. The eye that partially burned restored itself entirely, but instead of being normal it was a red eye with a small yellow pupil of a Grimm. The burn scar on half of his face covered itself in the shadowy matter, with occasional glowing red lines here and there, all leading to his now Grimm eye:

-Sister, we're one at last!-Von Greim said. His human voice was colliding with Grimm snarling, making him sound much more menacing, even more than when he had his asthmatic voice

-Beep beep beep! Oh sorry, that's just my incest alarm going off!-William yelled from a distance

Nick looked at him with disgust. Von Greim's prisoners wanted to facepalm. But when William realized how much of a mood killer he is, he immediately refrained himself from commenting further.

-Alright, you've really killed the mood now...-said Nick

That was a mistake. When Nick was expressing his disgust for William at that moment, Von Greim dashed even faster than before towards him. Nick barely blocked it and the blow from the traitor's Grimm hand was much more powerful than his saber before transforming. Nick responded to Von Greim's surprise attack by dashing a bit away from him, closer to the prisoners:

-Hmm hmm!-Penny tried to scream, but the flex tape completely muffled it

-I'm kinda busy right now Penny!-Nick responded and immediately dashed somewhere else, because Von Greim was preparing for another attack

Nick was now near the edge of the rooftop. But it didn't look like Von Greim wanted this fight to end too quickly. He did some kind of gesture with his Grimm hand and suddenly every finger got its own claw. Schwartz now had claws:

-Oh come on! That looks like one of these low budget horror movies now!-William yelled yet again

-Shut the fuck up!-yelled Nick

Von Greim dashed again. Nick dodged and grabbed a hold of his sword. The blade clashed with the Grimm claws and the duel truly began. Nick was trying to find a hole in Schwartz's defense and hit it but he also had to defend himself from his incredibly quick attacks. It was starting to wear Nick out so at the nearest occasion he jumped away from Von Greim, switching the sword into a pistol and firing a barrage of bullets.

It worked at first, hitting Von Greim a few times before he started to deflect it. At some point Nick heard clicking in his gun that he didn't like. "Out of ammo" he quickly thought and immediately went paler. In the meantime Schwartz took out his revolver. It turned out that despite the Grimm's control he could still use his gun. He was firing a barrage of bullets as well and what was worse, the bullets seemed like they're looking for Van Thorne. Nick was, of course, trying to deflect the bullets. When it seemed like they stopped rushing towards him he breathed a sigh of relief:

-I think that's all of them...

But then suddenly he felt great pain in his right knee. He squirmed and hissed from pain. He looked at the spot. Blood was coming from his knee. One of Von Greim's bullets got him:

-How...-he asked himself

-This gun has remotely controlled bullets! Now to finish you off...-said Schwartz with his distorted voice and was about to dash and finish Nick off...

But then he tripped and fell on the ground. Something was wrapped around one of his ankles. He looked closer at it. It was William's electrical whip:

-Michael Cane, at your service!-yelled Vengh-Nick, get him now!

Van Thorne quickly grabbed a hold of his sword and jumped at Von Greim with all the strength he had, still internally screaming from the pain in the knee. The prisoners of the traitor kept on trying to scream through the flex tape, but Nick didn't pay attention. Meanwhile, William switched his cane on and an electrical shock went through the Grimm Von Greim body. The traitor started to convulse. Nick dove down with his weapon drawn at Von Greim, ready to sever his filthy head once and for all.

But Von Greim caught his blade with his still human hand. He somehow overcame the convulsions and now his hand with Grimm claws was reaching the edge of William's cane still tied around his ankle:

-Oh shit shit shit!-William panicked and was about to press a button to free Von Greim's ankle

But it was too late. The traitor managed to touch the electricity. The shock went through him, but it also went through the hand he held Nick's sword with. And through Nick's blade it went right into his body, electrocuting him greatly...

Nick felt like he's internally burning. All his life flashed before his eyes. Suddenly he felt something he never wanted to feel:

-Noooooo!-this time he really screamed

Von Greim pulled his sword, revealing the string it was attached to and without hesitation he cut the string with his claws. The sword fell down on the ground and after that the traitor kicked it away, not caring where...

Once the electrical shock stopped (William finally pressed the right button), Nick felt helpless. His guns were empty, one of his swords was really knocked out of his hands and Von Greim seemed like he's only more pissed off. Van Thorne didn't want to take out his other sword because he knew Schwartz would do the same thing as before. So he decided to do something desperate. He stood up from the ground, still feeling the tingles of electricity as well as the pain in right knee, clenched his fists and let his guard up. Von Greim smiled (it was terrifying) and accepted the challenge, preparing his fists as well.

For the next couple of minutes the two Hexmen were fighting just with their fists, but in this it was Nick who had the upper hand. Von Greim's punches were fast, but he was too focused on Nick's head to see that his opponent would keep hitting him everywhere but in the head:

-Agh! You fucking...Agh!-Von Greim was yelling as Nick's repeated punches were finally reaching his face. Schwartz's voice seemed to overcome his Grimm part when he was groaning from pain

At some point Von Greim felt like he's losing. He wouldn't accept that, so he used the last trick he had up his sleeve...

All of a sudden when Nick blinked and was about to strike Von Greim in the jaw again, he got confused. It was no longer Von Greim, who stood in front of him...

It was Yang:

-No, Nicky, please!-she cried when Nick's fist was just in front of her face

Nick suddenly got confused. He wanted to get this punch to the end, but...his fist was disobeying him...he didn't know that only he was seeing an illusion in front of him. William and the prisoners could still see Von Greim:

-What are you waiting for?!-yelled William

Suddenly from Vengh's perspective Von Greim slowly moved behind Nick and his Grimm claws were slowly coming out on his hand:

-Nick...don't...please...-Yang's illusion was saying to the still confused Nick

-NICK, BEHIND YOU!-William screamed as loud as he could

Nick only managed to turn around. The next thing he knew there was a blink of a blade in the air and immediately after that he felt some unknown cold pain in his chest...

Von Greim shoved his entire claw hand in his ribcage, piercing it and making the Yang illusion disappear. His grin was only getting louder. Nick's mouth was filling up with iron:

-Nooooooooooo!-William screamed again and fell on his knees

-You're going down...just like Seraphimovich...-said Von Greim as the shadowy matter of the Grimm was consuming him more because of his sense of vengeance

Nick was unable to utter a word. All he could do was gurgling blood. The prisoners almost immediately started to cry, struggling with their ties and the flex tape even more. Daisy was trying to reach out with her legs towards Nick's sword, which was lying near where they were all tied up.

Schwartz took his hands out of Nick's chest and tossed him to the ground. William was still covering his face in his hands, completely heartbroken. Schwartz triumphed. And on this occasion he grabbed Nick by the edge of his stained in blood coat and dragged him down with himself to the room they were in before the fight on the rooftop (he jumped through the hole William made with his entrance):

-It's too cold outside today-said Von Greim as he was placing the dying Nick by the fireplace

Nick didn't answer.

-You could at least be grateful for once...

Nick was still silent

-You know I'm not going to finish you off. I want you to die slowly, just like my sister was dying before Dante took her soul...

-I...would never...sentence you...-Nick was trying to wheeze as he was getting cold

-Hm?

-To such...suffering...-Van Thorne managed to finish his sentence

-That's because you wouldn't have an excuse...you shouldn't think about that now...-Von Greim replied

"No. I most definitely should" Nick was thinking as he was now devising a last chance plan in his head. "Aura, please, don't give up on me now...I'm so close" Nick was thinking as he was focusing on Von Greim, who was now just staring through the window. "Mother...father...auntie...give me this last bit of strength..." Nick was thinking as he was snapping his fingers.

He felt the spark of Aard in his hand. It wasn't strong, but the sign itself seemed to have strength in it...

True strength...

When Nick pointed his hand forward, it was already too late for Von Greim:

-You little!

Those were the last words the traitor managed to utter before Aard hit him straight in the face, kicking him back so far he broke the window and flew right out of the tower and was now falling on the cold ground with impact quickly rising among shards of glass. He couldn't do anything as some glass shards were repeatedly stabbing him, manipulated with the last bits of Nick's strength in that Aard.

When Von Greim hit the ground, he was already crippled and impaled to it with a few shards. He could barely move. He was furious, but also surprised. He had no strength to scream as a shard of glass pierced his throat. But Von Greim was partially a Grimm. He still could speak:

-You...fucking brat...-he was cursing-after all I've done for your family and you...this is how you repay me? This is how you repay Salem? Glass shards in a desperate attempt to kill me? You better be dead when I come back up there...or I'll make sure your parents don't recognize you when you reach Paradise Lost...

But then suddenly Schwartz noticed a shadow of his size right above him. He immediately recognized it. It was Yennefer's piano, one Nick practiced on when he was a kid. The piano was going right for him. It was about to drop on him with the same impact he hit the ground:

-Good...fucking...riddance...-were Von Greim's last words

When the first stream of blood started to flow from below the destroyed instrument that crushed all the remaining bones in Von Greim's body, including his skull which pierced the brain, killing him instantly, Nick was leaning against the window frame, coughing out the rest of his blood. He did it. He finally murdered the man who caused him to suffer all his life. He finally killed the man who took everything from him and wanted to take even more. Seeing his struggle's end at last, he whispered to himself a fragment of one of his favorite poems:

-"look forward, late grandson...deaf stones groaned...exemplar hit the pavement..."

"Goodbye, everyone..." he thought in his head...this was his last thought. After that, he dropped dead on the couch he was on as he was pushing his mother's piano out. His death was now inevitable...

But Nick's death didn't go unnoticed even at Haven. While she was typing something on her scroll, terrible pain went through Yang Xiao Long's arm. It immediately caused her to drop her scroll on the ground and look upon herself. It was the arm Nick restored with ancestration. And now she could see the reason of this pain. There was a wound in the palm which was bleeding. Yang wouldn't be so depressed upon seeing that if it was her other arm. Her eyes immediately filled up with tears:

-Nick...-she just yelped before she started to weep

At the same time, in Atlesian prison in Haven, Cinder Fall was about to go to sleep when suddenly vision in one of her eyes went red. It was the eye Nick restored when he visited her. With her hand shaking in fear she touched her lower eyelid. She looked at her fingers. There was blood on them:

-No...it...it can't be...-she said to herself with a shaky voice before her tears started to wash away the blood

-Nick! Nick! Nick, where are you?!-voices from a short distance could be heard as the now untied prisoners and William were looking for their friend. Finally they arrived at the former living room of the Hexman and saw him lying on the couch, not moving an inch

-That body...-Oro pointed his shaking finger forward

-It's...Nick...-Daisy quietly mumbled

-Nick is lying here...-Shopkeep barely kept his blood pressure stable

Ciel, Penny and Neon immediately felt as their eyes fill up with tears mercilessly:

-Nicky...-Penny was the first one to kneel from sorrow as she was now crying tears of sorrow despite her robotic parts in generating tears

But it still was William who was in biggest grief. He ran up to his best friend, tried to shake him to wake up...but when that didn't worked, his robotic eye cracked, while the other one was a waterfall of tears:

-NIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIICK!-he screamed as loud as he could and kept calling his friend with all the strength he had. Nicholas didn't answer...

Others were in deep mourning as well. Ciel, Neon and Penny couldn't stop their eyes. Grizaj, Daisy and the Shopkeep turned their heads to the side just so that they can wash away tears...

-For the love of Dante's arsehole!-suddenly some unknown voice could be heard in the same room, yelling quite loudly

The grieving crowd of people looked in the direction from where the voice could be heard:

-You guys were so loud even the Tinsel itself was flowing faster...and here I thought Gwynbleidd will be like vacation...

-Wait a second!-William yelled-you are...

-Aquarius!-Ciel finished for him

-That is correct-the former demon responded as he was walking towards the couch now, pushing away everyone gathered in the room. After that he kneeled in front of Nick's dead body:

-What is he doing?-Neon asked Ciel, a bit furious

-Ouch...feels like he had a rough time...-said Aquarius

-Rough time?! He's dead!-yelled Daisy

Aquarius didn't respond, instead looking through the window. He noticed Von Greim, lying on the ground, smashed with a piano:

-At least he got what he deserved, lousy piece of asthmatic human Grimm garbage...-said Aquarius, cursing Von Greim as much as he could

He then turned back to the dead Nick and pulled out rubber gloves from somewhere, which he then put on his hands:

-Well, I think it's not too late yet!-he said

-Too late for what?-asked Penny, confused

Aquarius yet again didn't respond, instead he started rubbing his hands across Nick's body, from time to time listening if he's still breathing. And then...a miracle started to happen

All the blood Nick lost was coming back inside of his body from both the rooftop and the former living room. As Nick's pale from death body was gaining back colors, Van Thorne's friends were slowly getting speechless. Aquarius only smirked, proud of himself...

After a while all Nick's wounds were gone, his skin had a living color and there was no more blood anywhere on him. Aquarius gently took off his gloves and hid them somewhere. After that he wiped sweat off his forehead and put his hands against his hips:

-Aaaaand...all done!-he said with pride

Everyone was looking at Nick's body on the couch...

When suddenly it moved. They could hear a loud breath coming out of the Hexman's mouth. Everyone gasped, their tears now expressing joy...

And then he opened his eyes:

-Welcome back, Van Thorne. We missed you dearly-said Aquarius

-Where...what happened?-those were Nick's first words after that resurrection

-Oh nothing too serious. Your soul didn't manage to leave your body yet so I was able to resurrect you...but you were really dead for a short there...eh, still nothing too challenging for redeemed demon magic!-said Aquarius

-Shut up!-yelled William and immediately kneeled in front of his friend-Nick, are you alright?

-Your eye cracked...-Van Thorne replied

-So selfless as always-Vengh replied

After that everybody laughed with joy and were now filled with enthusiasm. Von Greim was finally dead...a new dawn was about to rise at Gwynbleidd...

As Nick and the rest of his crew were leaving the fortress, they were discussing something completely different. Team CRDL managed to catch up with them when they were going down the stairs in the middle tower:

-So you're recruiting people for the new Brotherhood now?-asked Penny

-That's right-replied Nick-Gwynbleidd still needs protection and the rest of Remnant too. I want to recreate the Brotherhood and continue my father's legacy to finally find a way to put the Grimm back where they belong

-What about the demons?-asked Aquarius

-They can't stop us, let them try-said Grizaj

-Exactly-said Nick

They returned to Gwynbleidd as heroes. The people viewed them as their saviors, liberators from the terror of the Marquess and his disgraceful clan of treacherous Counts. And for that, a lot of Gwynbleiddean musicians announced that the celebration will last for a whole week straight. After these words the entire Gwynbleidd, even beyond the houses, became festive. Our heroes were crowdsurfing, feasting and dancing their legs off. At some point Daisy even returned from her scouting with a couple of unexpected guests:

-Elder Shay! Flemme! Rautar! What a pleasant surprise!-said Nicholas as he was greeting guests from Domgard who heard the sounds of the celebration from Domgard and wanted to ask if they can join in...

There hasn't been a moment of comradery like this in Remnant for way too long. It seemed as if Domgard and Gwynbleidd weren't separate communities anymore. Flemme and Daisy were dancing with floral wreaths while Elder Shay and Rautar were sitting with Nick by the bench and talking:

-So what will you do now?-asked Shay when Nick was drinking a pint of mead after telling him what happened in the fortress

-I must return to Haven...I have my family there...-said Nick

-I see-said the Elder

-Hey, Rautar-Nick bumped the blacksmith in the shoulder-could we change that order I made at your shop?

-Of course!-the blacksmith replied

-Good...listen, when I was in my fortress it looked a little...nasty. I was wondering if you could get a couple of guys here and do a complete renovation of the interiors...

-Well I most certainly can try...-said Rautar

-But-Nick raised his finger-only change a window in the middle tower and patch the rooftop. Don't change anything else there...

-Understood-Rautar replied and shook Nick's hand

-Now, as for you, Shay...-Nick turned back to the man in the red robe

-Yes?

-I'd like you to become the mayor of Gwynbleidd

Rautar spat his mead across the table:

-What?!-Shay seemed utterly surprised

-You heard me-Nick replied and smiled

-But...but...I can't speak any of the Gwynbleiddean dialects!

-That can be fixed. You see that cute innkeeper there, dancing with Flemme? That's Daisy, she can communicate in regular language and all the Gwynbleiddean dialects. Just hire her as your assistant and you'll have no problem translating your words to people!

-When you put it like that...alright, I accept-said Shay after thinking for a short time and shook Nick's hand as well

-But-Nicholas raised his finger again-I'll take Daisy and Flemme to Haven for a few days off. In the meantime, you can make sure everything's alright in Domgard. Don't forget, you'll still be their Elder. Consider this something like a second baby

Rautar let out a hearty laugh when he heard that and thus the atmosphere stopped being serious for the rest of the evening.

Of course, Nick and the rest couldn't afford to stay in Gwynbleidd for this whole week of partying. During the night break in the celebration, Ciel found a spot where she got a signal on her scroll and she called an Airship. Once they were sure it's going to arrive, William decided to leave for Haven earlier in Stephen as he needed to ask Merlot for an eye treatment. So when he left Gwynbleidd it was all just Nick and his newly made friends who were waiting for the airship.

-Oh my goodness!-sighed Nick as he and the rest dropped from tiredness on the bed in the airship-what a time to be alive, am I right?

-That was...sensational-sighed Penny and suddenly took something out. It was the champagne bottle Nick found earlier when they were flying to Gwynbleidd

-You remembered?-Nick was surprised

-Welcome to the family, after all-said Penny

Everyone drank a sip of the champagne from the bottle, not even bothering to get up and get some glasses. Once the alcohol was getting into their brains, they fell asleep at last free of all their assignments. Nick's scroll vibrated, informing him that he received 12 thousand Liens as a reward for killing Von Greim and his crew, who turned out to also be wanted criminal masterminds somewhere on Remnant. But Nick was sleeping like a stone and didn't even feel when at some point Penny, Ciel, Neon, Daisy and Flemme crawled up to him and fell asleep clinging onto him...

The airship landed in Haven very early in the morning. Everyone inside woke up with a loud yawn. It was a rough time. But our heroes overcame it and finally they could get back where their home now was. To Tromberg, her new assistant named Leonardo Lionheart, team RWBY, JNPR, CFVY, SSSN, ABRN...hell, Nick even kind of missed the Malachite sisters for some reason.

The sun hit everyone in the eyes, blinding them for a moment. They were slowly walking down the staircase until their feet finally touched the ground:

-So...this is it-said Nick

-We're going to return to school life now?-asked Flynt

-We will...but nothing will be the same anymore, except for one thing...

-What would that be?-asked Ciel

-Our bond...-Nick replied and looked at the panoramic landscape of the city of Mistral with a greeting look. Others smiled at that sight but didn't stay with Van Thorne. Instead they walked away towards the dorms to get some more sleep before the lessons hit them...

-Nick?-suddenly the Hexman heard a familiar voice a couple of steps behind him. He turned around to see Yang, with her eyes swollen from crying, but yet again filling up with tears...this time they were tears of joy. The wound on her hand already managed to heal up...

As she started running towards her boyfriend, Nick felt something new. He felt like this is the end...but also the beginning...

 **(At last we're here. Thank you for reading my fanfiction up until now. That concludes the first story arc of this long-time series. The pieces of dialogue written in Gwynbleiddean in this chapter are too numerous, I can't translate them all here because it would turn from already a 40k chapter to a 50k chapter. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for reading this fic. If you enjoyed it, I'm happy for you. Stay tuned for the next story arc when I return from my days off...and stay safe, my dear reader. Author out...and may the Maidens protect you)**


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